One Day At A Time
by Joker-Girl-Kelly
Summary: "I don't like the idea of anyone poking around in my head." "Well, neither do Ah, but when Ah start havin dreams about wars that happened long before Ah was even born, Ah think it's time to do something." Life has been good for the past year, for Marie and Logan, and for Kris, but things are starting to change again, and maybe not for the better. Rogan, Sabretooth/OC
1. One Year Later

_**Disclaimer: It should be pretty darn obvious that I do not own any of this. Well, except for the babies! And Kris and… well, it'll be obvious who the OC's are. **_

_**This is a continuation of/sequel to my fic **_**Act Like A Boy**_**, so go read that one first!**_

_**Ok, here's the timeline I've come up with, just avoid any possible confusion:**_

_**It's been about a year since the end of **_**Act Like A Boy.**

_**Kris – 18 years old, been living with her mother and Victor for over a year.**_

_**Abigail and James – are only about a year old, obviously.**_

_**Kris's mother, Carolyn (Rosie) – She met Victor at nineteen and had Kris at about 21, so I've got her at only about 39 years old. **_

_**Marie – is almost thirty.**_

_**Side note: I have not had a chance to read any of the X-Men comics or anything like that (though I wish), so all I know of any of this universe is really from what's in the movies. That being said, any background stuff will definitely be straight from my own imagination. Just letting people know. :)**_

_**Read on and enjoy!**_

* * *

Screams. She could hear them ringing out from all the way on the other side of the enormous compound. They told her those were the dangerous ones – crazy ones. That's why they were locked up like they were.

She believed that at first. The more she thought about it, though…

Hurrying across the yard, her spiky heals digging into the dirt a bit, manila folders tucked beneath her arm, she resolved _not_ to think about it. Not to wonder what was really going on. Not to wonder why she could sometimes smell something when she came here – something that reminded her of the morgue back at the hospital, minus the smell of disinfectants. Not to ask questions, because that wasn't what she was paid to do.

_Ha, _a part of her scoffed nastily, _damned if they don't pay you enough for this job, anyways._

She hurried into the same building she had the past three times, click clacked her way through the winding halls, finally darted down that one isolated hallway, with just the one door at the end of it.

She opened the door hesitantly, knocking softly. A deep baritone called out to her to come in, and she did, crossing the room quickly to lay the folders on the man's desk.

"This is it?" The man asked with just a hint of a southern drawl.

"Yes." She replied. "I-I did the tests myself, w-with the new equipment you gave me, it's incredible stuff."

He opened the folder on top, the one with the picture of the woman and her oddly dyed hair, and began to skim through it.

"Incredible indeed." He said. "Do you know if she has any idea?"

"Th-that she's a four? No sir, I don't think she does."

He snapped the folder shut and flashed her a warm grin.

"Thank you very much, Doctor. These will be very, very helpful I imagine. I'll let you know when next I'll need your services."

The Doctor nodded before turning to slip back out of the room.

"Oh, and Doctor."

The woman paused to look back at the man behind the desk.

"Do be careful out there. We wouldn't want her finding out what you've been doing. She and her husband are quite dangerous, you know."

Worried that the man would be able to hear her heart for all that it began to pound so hard in her chest, she hurried out of the room and shut the door behind her.

* * *

Marie's eyes flew open at the very first, tiny sound of a fussing baby. A soft, annoyed growl escaped unbidden from her lips as she buried her head in the pillow.

She thought about waking Logan, telling him it was his turn. Whoever it was doing the fussing probably wanted to be fed, though, so they wouldn't settle for Logan. That's usually how it went, anyways. Sighing, she crawled out from under the warm blankets she was wrapped in. Headed out of the room and down the hall, her bare feet scarcely making a sound on the wooden floors.

"Ok, ok baby girl, Mama's here." She whispered to Abigail, picking the baby up just as she began to really cry out and hurrying her out of the room so as not to wake James too.

She took the baby out into the living room and began the process of trying to figure out how to silence the fussy little pup in her arms.

Pup.

She blinked at herself. That's what Logan called them, and she'd thought it sounded strange at first, but now it seemed he was rubbing off on her.

A bottle seemed to make Abigail at least a little happier – for about half a minute. Then she was back to fussing, for no apparent reason.

Well, Marie had discovered a trick for that. A strange trick that was weirdly animal and not at all human, but she found it was ridiculous easy to give in to those instincts Logan had gifted her with when it was just her and him around to know about it.

Plus, it worked. Usually.

She held her daughter close so the baby's head was pressed to her chest as a deep purr vibrated from somewhere within it. The baby began to relax, slowly but surely. Marie sat down in the old rocking chair she'd bought months ago and began rocking slowly back and forth, and sure enough, the baby quieted completely. Wanting to make sure she wasn't going to wake again, Marie got up slowly and kept purring as she brought Abigail back to the nursery. She laid the baby down gently in her crib, breathed a sigh of relief when she didn't stir, padded back across the room.

Froze as the wooden floor beneath her feet creaked, crazy loud. Well, to her ears anyways. Maybe the babies wouldn't…

She was never that lucky.

She was pretty sure that was James beginning to cry out now.

_Spend half an hour gettin one of them back to sleep, rinse and repeat…_

Good thing she didn't have to work early tomorrow.

She turned back around, shuffled back into the room, picked James up, and began the same process all over again…

_Gun fire. Loud, unrelenting. Ducking down, in a trench of some kind. Have to get out of here, have to keep moving. Climb out, head towards the nearest building. Dive behind it, more gun fire. Shoot back. Keep moving. Meet up with some others, so young, really just kids, all so scared. Growl at them, tell them to get back. Not even breathing as the soldiers start combing the area, speaking German. The kids, so scared, so jumpy. One moves, brings up his gun… a soldier sees, spits out something in German, comes towards them, aims his own gun. Jump in front of the kids, quick…_

Marie's eyes flew open with a start. She was gasping for breath, bringing her only free hand up to feel along her stomach for wounds that were never there. It took her a moment to realize she was in the rocking chair, in the den. With James, who was sound asleep.

That wasn't her. In the dream. This realization startled her even more than the strange dream itself. The voice she'd been talking with was Logan's.

She took James back into the nursery, laying him gently in his crib, before briskly making her way down the hall. She had a feeling…

Sure enough, she walked into the room to see Logan wide awake, sitting up beneath their now shredded bed sheets.

"Nightmare. Right?" She asked quietly.

He only nodded, still breathing a bit heavy.

She stood frozen in the doorway for a long moment, just staring at him. He took a moment to get his own bearings, then turned to her, brows furrowed.

"Marie?"

"Ah-Ah…" She tried to say something, but nothing came out.

He got out of the bed, crossing the room to her in just a few short strides.

"What's wrong? Did I scare you?"

"No." She said quickly. "No, never, nothin – nothin like that. It' s just… Ah saw… your dream… a war, right? Y-you were fightin, and there were guns, and big soldiers, speakin – speakin German…"

He just stared at her.

"Please tell me I was talking in my sleep this time."

"No, Ah was – Ah was rocking James earlier, fell asleep, and then Ah was watching all that through your eyes, and the next thing Ah know Ah almost jump right out of the chair ready to run from phantom bullets."

She stops, and then they stare at each other, not sure of what to do.

And then she throws her arms around him, murmuring into his ear.

"You took the bullets. For them."

He doesn't answer, just buries his face in her neck and tries not to let her know how shaken he is.

…

"That's the fourth time it's happened, Logan. Maybe we should call Hank or something." Marie suggested later that morning. They were in the kitchen, and she was cooking eggs in a skillet, James sitting contentedly on her hip. Abigail was playing with a little stuffed bear on the floor in front of Logan.

"What's Furball going to do from all the way down in Westchester?"

"Ah don't know. We could go down and see him. Or maybe he'd be willing to come up here, it wouldn't take long in the Bird."

"We haven't talked to anyone down there in over a year."

"Ah talk to Jubes every now and then. They'd still be willing to help."

"Maybe."

"Probably." Marie paused as she began dishing the eggs out and moved on to make some toast. "Maybe your right, Hank might not know how to help, but maybe he would know someone who could."

"We'd need a telepath or something, wouldn't we? I don't like the idea of anyone poking around in my head."

"Well, neither do Ah," Marie snapped, starting to get annoyed, "but when Ah start havin dreams about wars that happened long before Ah was even _born, _Ah think it's time to do _something_."

"We ain't calling Hank, Marie." Logan snapped back with finality, and Marie let out a sigh that was half way to a growl as she set his breakfast in front of him.

Maybe he wouldn't, but maybe she would. She had a bad feeling about all of this, and Logan was the one who always told her to follow her instincts.

The thing was, things had been perfect up until two weeks ago. Their life was as normal as normal got for them. She was still working at the diner, but didn't mind it at all. She was comfortable there. Logan was well known in town for how well he did fixing cars. If they wanted to get out for a while, the elderly woman who owned the diner Marie worked at gladly babysat; she thought the babies were just the cutest. If they needed any extra cash, Logan went out to find a cage, and that took care of that.

They'd been keeping things simple, because they both liked it that way.

And then she'd gotten his nightmare for the first time weeks before, and she'd been unable to shake the feeling of _wrongness _ever since. Not just when it came to the nightmares. She felt it everywhere now.

"Hey." Logan said quietly, shaking her out of her reverie. She grimaced, realizing that she'd just been staring down at her eggs, which were probably cold by now. Logan had long since gotten up, getting ready to leave for work. He placed a kiss on each of the babies heads before turning to her. "I'm sorry. If you want to call Hank, I guess it can't hurt." He kissed the top of her head. "We can talk more about it tonight."

"Alright. Love you, Logan."

"You too, Darlin."

Marie watched him leave, and raised an eyebrow when Fang – the wolf-dog they had semi-adopted after finding him wandering down the road – came slipping through the door just before it closed.

Semi adopted. He came and went as he pleased. It was funny how he always did come wandering back, though.

He pranced across the den and into the kitchen. Abigail, who was standing while holding onto Marie's leg for support, squealed with delight when he came up and licked her cheek.

Marie turned her eyes on James, who was sitting in her lap.

"Well, I guess Mama's got a phone call to make."

James looked at her with big eyes that had been slowly darkening to become brown, just like hers.

"Mama!" He exclaimed in response, his favorite of the three words he could say at that point, and Marie giggled.

"Come on, let's find you and your sister something to play with." She peered down at Abigail, who was staring up at her now with eyes that seemed to become more like her fathers every day. "I'll be right back for you, baby girl." She got up and began heading towards the nursery, giggling again when Abigail took to crawling after them.

* * *

There was country music playing softly in the background – she recognized the artist, couldn't remember his name – and the whole house smelled like cookies and citrus. And that's just what she could tell while paying less than half her attention to her surroundings.

It was still so weird sometimes, having senses so heightened.

She could also very distinctly smell her boyfriend's cologne – nothing too strong, but it smelled amazing – along with something else, something that was distinctly him. Right now, it was turning her on.

"Kr-Kris." He pulled away, breathing heavy, and she could smell how aroused he was.

"What is it, baby?" She asked between the kisses she began to trail down his neck, sliding her hands down to begin unbuttoning the shirt he was wearing.

"Y-You need… Maybe we should… I mean, I-I've never…"

She silenced him by devouring his lips again.

"Neither've Ah." She breathed, her emerald greens smiling mischievously. "Sounds like fun, though, don't it?"

He stared at her for a long moment, hands planted on her hips.

"Doesn't it."

"What?"

"You said 'don't it'."

"Ben. Why'd yah bring me here where we'd be alone if yah weren't even interested in me?" She asked, crossing her arms, her eyes narrowing.

"Because I thought – because you were – I mean, you looked so – damn. I don't know. I mean, I _am _interested in you, really, I am."

She let out a soft growl.

"Well, then, what's the problem?"

He opened his mouth again, but no sound came out. She rolled her eyes.

"Why don't," she drawled, gripping the collar of his button down and pulling at both sides, the buttons popping off, "you just," she moved her hands down and pulled again, and more buttons popped off, "relax." She slid her hands down one more time and tore the rest of the shirt open, then paused to admire his abs. Then she peered up at him, briefly catching her reflection in the mirror behind him. Her eyes were turning feral, golden yellow – with lust this time, not with anger. "Let me do all the work." She slid her hands over the rippling muscles on his stomach, then hugged his waist beneath his shirt.

He shuddered, and she could feel the goose bumps raising on his skin.

She could also feel another very definite sign of his arousal pressing against her – she gave him a smirk much like her fathers before coming down to kiss him.

"Y-you seem pretty – you sure you haven't –"

"Ah meant Ah was a virgin. Didn't say Ah had no experience." She grabbed his hand and guided it to begin sliding up her shirt, urging him on, and he seemed to be quickly losing the will to protest. A brief minute passed and her shirt was off. Another two, he was working on her bra. Another two and he was hesitating again, so she slid down and began undoing his jeans…

Her phone rang. She swore. He seemed both relieved and frustrated at once. She stood unabashed, not bothering to cover up her naked top half, and he was blushing.

She pulled her phone out and looked down at it. Froze, her eyes widening.

"What is it?" He asked.

"Victor." She muttered, smiling. "My Dad's home. Ah have to go."

"Wait, what? Now? B-but…"

She slid her tank top back on, not bothering with her bra, tossing it carelessly over her shoulder to land in his lap as she went.

"Keep that safe for me, will yah?" She drawled as she strolled out of the house, hips swaying. "Ah'll expect it back next time."

It didn't occur to her until she was half way across the compound they lived in, halfway back to the little house she lived in with her mother and Victor, that her mother would notice she wasn't wearing her bra.

Of course, Victor would also be able to sniff out Ben's scent on her. He'd know what they'd been doing immediately. His reaction, though – that was anyone's guess. Her mother had taken to complaining that she could almost never predict how the two would handle each other; it was driving her crazy.

"Short trip." Kris muttered at the thought. "Yah'll were crazy to begin with, old woman."

She wasn't sure what had come over her the past year. She used to be all shy around guys when it came to, well, what she had just been getting at with Ben. But something had been changing. _Kris _had been changing, everything about her.

It had gotten to the point where she was seriously thinking about not even going by Kris anymore. Somehow it just didn't seem to fit now. The name Kristine sounded so _innocent _to her somehow, and she didn't feel innocent in any way anymore. Not after the accident with her step-father. Not after mauling all those men to get to her mother. Not after all the fights she started getting in when she was at the mansion those few months.

Certainly not with the way she'd been acting around boys either. It was like someone had flipped a switch or something, and she'd gone from barely noticing guys like that, to almost not being able to _not _notice guys like that.

And it had gotten ten times worse in the past few weeks, as had just been proven by what she'd been so ready to give up to Ben moments earlier.

What was _wrong _with her, anyways?

"Hey Mama." Kris called out as she strolled into their house.

"Hello Kristine. Where've yah been all day? With that nice boy Ben?"

"Uh. Yeah. Yeah, Ah was with Ben. He took me out. To eat." It wasn't entirely a lie. He had taken her outside of the compound, to a cute little diner not far up the road.

"Victor should be home any minute, he'll be wanting to see you." Her mother peered down the hall way from the kitchen as Kris was about to head upstairs to change clothes.

"Uh, yeah, Ah'll be down in just a minute Mama."

"Alright."

She changed quickly and let her long brunette brown hair down; it had been in a braid, the way she'd always been keeping it lately, but was a mess by now. She thought about putting on some of that perfume her Mama had given her to try and mask anything Victor would smell on her.

But then, she was obviously not the type of girl to use perfume, so he'd know something was up anyways.

Why her Mama had even given her perfume, Kris really had no clue. Maybe because it was something she might've worn, before things changed. It seemed like her Mama didn't quite know what to do with her anymore.

Deciding she was as good as she was going to get, she bounced back down the stairs and headed for the kitchen.

Her Mama gave her a warm smile as she sat down at the table.

"By the way, that nice woman from the school, the one with the white hair –"

"Professor Munroe."

"Yes, she called today and said she wanted to see you."

"Oh. At the mansion? That's like a two hour drive."

"Well, Ah was thinkin you could drive yourself there, you got your license, no reason yah can't. You can use my car."

"Really?" Kris smiled. It was nice to know her Mama trusted her, at least. "Cool."

The front door opened and Kris's eyes lit up, as did her Mama's. Victor was back.

A year and six months they'd been together as a – well, family, though certainly not a normal one in any sense of the word. They had settled into a sort of routine, though.

The thing was, the place they were living… well, Kris knew little about it and who was behind it all, and her Mama knew even less. What they _did _know was that whoever was behind it was crazy powerful, and probably a mutant, considering the compound was really a small city made up of them.

Her father worked for whoever this person was. And got paid well for it. Though, he didn't seem so interested in money; Kris had begun to see the truth, which was that he enjoyed his job, although she was positive it _was not _a nice one.

Kris had only just begun to ask questions; his response was to make a bargain with her. He taught her how to fight, how to defend herself. And how to use her new senses to the fullest. The more she learned how to take care of herself, the more he explained to her. She'd been picking the fighting skills up fast. Faster than anyone he'd ever seen, he'd told her.

Her Mama, on the other hand, had said she didn't want to know why Victor was out at least two days ever week doing _something_. Kris had asked her if she was curious, just once, and her Mama had said that the less she knew, the better.

She had Victor back; she was happy with that.

"Victor!" Her mother jogged into his arms. Kris pretended to gag as she watched him give her Mama a fierce kiss, just like he always did.

"Hey, Dad." She said, walking up to them.

"Hey, half pint." He replied as she stepped into his arms for a hug. He kept her there for a minute, and she got a little nervous as he leaned down a bit to sniff at her hair.

A chuckled rumbled past his lips, and she looked up to see he looked thoroughly amused.

"Wonder if Rosie knows what you've been up to." He said, smirking.

"She's been with that nice boy Ben all day." Her Mama responded quite confidently, then frowned when she noticed the look on her lovers face. "What? Am Ah missin somethin?"

Victor turned his dark, amused eyes on her, not saying a word. She tried to keep from blushing.

"I-it's nothin Mama."

"Doesn't look like nothin." Her Mama put her hands on her hips as she studied her daughter. "Kristine Victoria –"

"Come on, kid, we're going for a walk. I got something to tell you, and you're overdue for fighting practice." Her father came to her rescue.

She let out a breath as he led her out of the house and away from her glaring mother.

…

"I know where Dillon is." He said, and her world slowed to a stop at the mention of her ex-step-father's name.

Victor gave her a brief moment to process that before going on.

"Not where _exactly_, but I know what he's been up to, where to start with tracking him down, and who took your mother. I know he was working with the bastards from the beginning. What gets done about it is up to you. Just thought you should know."

She opened her mouth, but no sound came out, she didn't know where to start. She let out a breath.

"D-did he know. About – Ah mean, did he marry Mama because – did he know Ah'd be a mutant?"

"Can't know that, kiddo. Sure looks like some kinda set up to me, though."

First she felt like crying. And she did. A few tears slipped unbidden down her cheeks at the thought that maybe it had all been an act. Maybe the man she'd called Daddy for sixteen of her eighteen years had never really loved her, had only ever seen her as the freak he'd claimed her to be the day she'd first shown signs of her mutation.

Victor was quiet. Patient. Waiting, probably for what he knew would come next.

And it did.

The rage.

She let out a low and entirely inhuman growl, her eyes turning that wolf like golden yellow as she turned and sent a fist slamming into the nearest hard object – which just happened to be a brick wall.

Then she stood and just stared at the wall a moment. She'd chipped a dent in it. A very, very small one, but it was _brick. _She was always forgetting her own strength lately, scaring herself with outbursts like that.

She waited long enough for the fingers she'd just broken to heal themselves.

"Ah wanna go after him." She said firmly.

"Why?" He asked her, and she spun back around to face him.

"What kinda question is that?"

"A damned good one. I can track him down for you, but I ain't gonna do that unless it's worth it. Why do you wanna go after him? What will you do when we find him?"

He wanted her to say she'd kill him.

She thought it over a minute, wondered if she really hated Dillon O'Connell that much.

Then she thought of her mother, beat up and tied to a chair. She thought of the nightmares her mother still had of all that, of how the older woman still woke up crying at night.

She thought of him yelling at her, telling her she was a freak, telling her she deserved to die, even though she'd done nothing wrong at that point.

She remembered coming so close to killing him just three days later – remembered lashing out with her strange nails that had become more claw like.

Remembered the men who shot her, tried to kill her, when all she'd been trying to do was get away. She hadn't fought back with them. And Dillon O'Connell had sent them.

"Ah'll kill him." She said finally, firmly, and Victor smirked.

"Had a feeling you'd say that. Come on, half pint, we got work to do." He said, leading her off for one of their usual training sessions.

* * *

_**Reviews, as you know by now, are super, super loved! Not so sure about this opening chap, so let me know. :)**_


	2. Linked

"Going somewhere?" Ben came up just as Kris was heading out to her mom's car.

"Duh." She responded playfully and he rolled his eyes.

"Shut up. Where are you going?"

"To visit someone at the boarding school I used to go to."

"Your parents are trusting you with the car for a two hour drive? Wow. I am amazed." He replied, sarcastically.

"Your parents trusted _you _in the house all by yahrself."

"I'm not as crazy as you."

"Good point, nothin even happened." She rolled her eyes at him, feeling annoyed at the thought, that same strange _something _coming over, the something that was always taking over her mind when guys were involved.

"Your phone went off." He pointed out.

"_You _were stalling." She replied, one eyebrow raised.

"So, bite me. I'd never even come close to, well, _you know_ before."

She smirked, stepping forward to slip her arms around his neck and devour his lips in a kiss.

"Careful what you wish for, Ah've been known..." She trailed off, nipping at his bottom lip before pulling away to get in the car.

He came up to stand beside her.

"I-is there still more where that came from?" He asked, sounding a little unsure of himself now. "I-I still have something of yours."

"Ah'll be back for it." She said with a wink and a smirk. "See yah, Benny boy."

He closed the car door and watched her drive off, thinking he was crazy to be with a girl like Kris, and really not minding this fact at all.

…

"Professor Munroe?" Kris peered into the woman's office. She froze in the doorway and smiled a little upon noticing who the older woman was with.

"Kris! Oh, I'm sorry, I didn't realize – I thought you'd be a little longer." Ororo was blushing as she took a step away from the rooms other occupant, and Kris felt a bit of a blush creep up on her own cheeks. She had obviously stepped in on a somewhat intimate moment.

"No, Ah'm sorry, should've knocked first or somethin." She replied. "Ah can wait out here if…"

"No, no." Hank McCoy spoke up in his deep baritone, sounding flustered. "I must be going, actually." He took Ororo's small hand in his own large blue one and brought it to his lips for a gentle kiss. Kris felt her eyebrows raise. "I will see you in a few days, my sweet."

Ororo blushed further.

"Missing you already." She replied with a sweet smile that Kris hadn't seen her give anyone before, except maybe Logan once or twice. "Stay safe." She added as Hank began to walk out.

"I will do my best." He replied. "Miss O'Connell." He nodded to her as he passed her with a smile.

"Bye Dr. McCoy." Kris waited for him to leave and did her very best to bite back a grin as she entered Ororo's office to face the older woman. "Uhm."

"Hank – er – Dr. McCoy is going out of town to take care of some business with a friend. He was just saying goodbye." Ororo explained.

"Ah. Right. Well." Kris blushed a little deeper. "Y-you wanted to see me?"

"Yes, of course, have a seat please. I have a sort of proposal for you actually."

"Proposal?" Kris sat down in one of the large leather chairs while Ororo leaned on the large wooden desk right in front of her.

"Yes. You weren't here for very long, but I was thinking the other day about one of the times you got sent here to my office."

"_Which _time?" Kris asked, half joking.

"I believe it was the day you bit Gabrielle."

"Oh." Kris said, looking a little sheepish.

"I asked you why her teasing the other girls made you so angry, and do you remember what you said."

Kris shrugged.

"Told you the truth, that Ah can't stand bullies."

"I can't help but to wonder why that is. Would you mind me asking you?"

Kris paused, trying to think of what to say to that.

"None of the other girls in my home town liked me much. My dad-Dillon had lived there most of his life, and there ain't no secrets in a small town. Ah realize now that it was because everyone knew Ah wasn't his kid; my Mama would've still be pregnant with me when she met him. Anyways, they used to tease me like crazy."

"You don't like bullies, because you know what it's like to _be _bullied. Story of just about every mutant's life." Ororo replied. "We're horribly understaffed here since Rogue and Logan are gone and not coming back. The X-Men…well, we've got Kitty, Bobby, and Jubilee and Remy. And Hank and I. Jubilee and Remy have a baby, though, and I feel horrible asking them to go on dangerous missions. We could use another member. My thought was to ask you if you'd like to be on the team. We would have to train you –"

"Victor's been teachin me how to fight." Kris offered. "But Ah've got – Ah can't leave my Mama again."

"She could come here, you'd both be welcome."

"She's not a mutant."

"But she is your mother."

"It's more than that, Ma'am. Ah just found my daddy. Ah don't wanna give him up so quick."

Ororo sighed.

"I had a feeling you wouldn't accept the offer. The truth is that I just wanted to make sure you know you're welcome here, always, and that you have the option of putting your abilities to good use. Being able to heal others as well as you heal yourself is an incredible gift."

"Thank you." Kris said, sincerely. "Really."

Ororo nodded and seemed to study her for a minute.

"Would you mind if I offer some advice?"

"Sure."

"The thing about the way you fought back to the girls here is, you opened yourself up for them to make you the bad girl. It's a fine line to walk, between fighting back and becoming the bully yourself. Try to keep that in mind."

Kris thought on that for a moment, staring at the older woman. Something told her that wasn't what Ororo had actually been about to say.

"Ah'll try. Thank you, Professor Munroe."

They talked a little for a few more minute, Ororo asking about how Kris was doing, and then Kris headed out.

Ororo watched her go and let out a heavy sigh before turning back around to look at the file sitting on her desk. She wondered if she should've told Kris about the mission she had lead Kitty, Bobby, and Hank on the just a few days ago. She wondered if Kris had any idea of who Dillon O'Connell, the man who pretended she was his own for so long, really was.

She wondered if Sabretooth – and she still couldn't believe Kris was his daughter, even though apart from her green eyes Kris did look like him – had already found it all out.

If he had, then Kris already knew.

She hoped desperately that the girl would be smart, would be strong enough, not to let her anger consume her.

She really, really hoped Kris would just leave well enough alone.

…

"Kris?"

The familiar voice just reached her ears. She was nearly out the door, about to head back home.

She paused, spinning back around to see a tall, thin blonde sprinting towards her.

"Lizzie!" She darted forward to give the other girl a hug.

"Where've you been? I've missed you!"

"With my parents, actually."

"You mean your Mama and your real father?"

"Duh." Kris replied. "How have you been? Have the other girls been leavin you alone?"

"Yeah. Sort of. More or less."

"More or less?"

"I had a break through, with my mutation, and they've been steering clear of me ever since."

"Break through? What do yah mean?"

"Come on, I'll show you." Grinning, Lizzie grabbed her arm and lead her out the front door of the mansion and headed towards the trees. It didn't take long for Kris to realize Lizzie was heading for the tree they'd climbed all those months ago. "Remember how my control was too shaky for me to use my powers that day?" Lizzie asked, knowing Kris would remember exactly what she was talking about. "Well, watch this."

Lizzie stepped back a bit and held up both hands, her eyes turning a milky white, just like Kris remembered Storm's doing whenever she wanted to change the weather.

And then the large branch, the one Lizzie had jumped form, _moved_. She could hear the woody, cracking sound it made as it shifted downwards. Lizzie stepped forward and onto it, keeping a hand on a smaller branch to steady herself as the large one shifted back up to its original position.

Kris stared up at her, eyes wide, and Lizzie grinned again.

"That is awesome!" Kris grinned back. "How did yah get control like that?"

"Me and some other girls went out to the mall the other day, and there was a cat stuck in a tree. I know it sounds silly to you, but I _knew _I could help it, I _knew _I could." Lizzie loved animals. To the point where Kris sometimes thought her crazy. "So I just took a deep breath, refused to be afraid, and did it. Half the tree moved, it seemed like. It's so easy it still kind of scares me, but I'm starting to get used to it."

"What's to be afraid of? It's amazing!"

Lizzie blushed a bit before shifting the branch again to get down.

"Are you sticking around at all?" Lizzie asked as they began heading back to the mansion.

"Uhm, no, Ah's just, uhm, Professor Munroe wanted to talk to me."

"Oh." Lizzie seemed a little disappointed. "Well, you should come visit every once in a while or something!"

"Maybe Ah will." They paused just as the made it back to the mansion. "You know – Ah could maybe stick around for just a little bit. Do you want to go to the mall or somethin?"

"You don't like the mall."

"But you do. Besides, Ah left without really telling you," Kris said, rubbing the back of her neck, "pretty sure friends don't do stuff like that. Ah feel bad."

Lizzie hesitated, seeming to think on it for a moment.

"Sure. Let's go."

* * *

'If there's something you don't want me to see, imagine stuffing it in a room and locking the door. I won't go near it.'

Marie concentrated, doing as she was told, trying to keep ahead of the man's presence in her mind as she locked away anything too private.

His name was Jim Grey, and he was a Doctor, though he hadn't said of what exactly. He was maybe forty years old, and was apparently a pretty strong telepath. Hank had only met him a few weeks before, something about a mission they'd gone on, he'd said it wasn't worth explaining.

That was alright. Marie had trusted Dr. Grey from the moment she laid eyes on him, though she couldn't even begin to fathom why. There was just something about his brown eyes and kind smile – the only thing she didn't like about him was the strong cologne he was wearing. It blocked out all other smells around, which was very odd.

'Please, try to relax. I can't enter your mind unless you let me.'

Marie took a breath, cleared her mind as best she could, and allowed herself to relax.

A moment or two passed, Marie couldn't tell quite how long, and suddenly all kinds of memories began flooding her mind. One minute she was watching Logan chopping wood in their back yard, then suddenly she was bouncing up to him and touching his face with her bare hand for the first time, then she was with Jubilee and Kitty and attempting to pick out a wedding dress.

She must've gasped out loud or something, as Dr. Grey's calm voice echoed in her mind again.

'I'm sorry, I should've warned you about that. Just give it a minute…'

Now she was in a smoky bar in Canada and watching Logan, then a stranger to her, fighting in a cage.

And then things really got strange, because that image quickly morphed into it being _her _in the cage. How could she be watching herself?

An odd sort of pressure began to build up in her head. She ignored it, figuring it was just another side effect.

An image of them in Las Vegas came up next, standing in a random little chapel for what barely passed as a wedding. First she was watching Logan, of course, but after a moment her point of view was switched as she was watching herself, wearing a leather jacket.

The first thought that came to mind was that she looked odd with such long hair.

The odd pressure became worse, a little more painful.

She could feel Dr. Grey digging deeper, seeming to carefully pick through her mind so as to bring up pleasant or trivial memories only. Getting married again, at the mansion this time, with Logan looking sharp but out of place in a tux. She was beginning to feel the emotions that came with the memories, as well. She could feel joy and nervousness and anticipation and love, love, love for the man standing before her.

The pressure got even worse, became even more painful, to the point she could no longer ignore it. She forced herself to say nothing though, allowed Dr. Grey to keep digging.

And then the point of view switched up again, and she wasn't just seeing what Logan saw, she was feeling what he was feeling. No nervousness, just happiness and a crazy amount of love that he could only remember feeling once before.

And then something happened, the pressure and pain in her head becoming unbearable, as an image of a beautiful woman with darker skin and hair appeared and…

She cried out, maybe just in her head, maybe physically, she wasn't sure because the pressure built and built and then suddenly…

Blessed oblivion.

…

"Marie? Marie?" Logan's voice called to her, coaxing her out of the strange darkness she'd been floating in. "Come on back, Darlin."

She crept back to consciousness slowly, awareness coming one sense at a time. Hearing, obviously, came first. She could hear Hank's deep baritone murmuring for Logan to give her room to breathe, and Dr. Grey murmuring an apology.

She felt a surge of annoyance that she somehow wasn't sure was her own. Logan snapped at Dr. Grey, nearly growled at him, 'you better can it, bub, or I'm…'

'Logan, please, he never meant any harm.' This from Hank.

Logan didn't like Dr. Grey. His name reminded him of Jean Grey.

Marie could smell the strange, too strong cologne that was blocking everything else out – and making her feel a bit uneasy at the moment.

Then she could feel Logan, obviously ignoring Hank, sitting beside her, wherever she was, and holding her hand.

Then, finally, she dared to try opening her eyes. The room was dimly lit, it was dark outside now, and that was ok. Her head was _pounding._

Odd. She never got headaches.

"Wha' happen'd?" She mumbled.

"Something went awry while Dr. Grey was looking through your mind." Hank replied. "How do you feel, my dear?"

"My head's killin me, but Ah'm alright." She tried to sit up, pausing when the room began to spin. "Ah think."

"Headaches aren't uncommon with what we were trying." Dr. Grey spoke up. "With your healing it shouldn't last long."

Marie closed her eyes and nodded. She could already feel the pain begin to ebb away, a little bit at a time.

She could feel Logan's eyes on her. She opened hers back up.

"Ah'm fine, Sugah, stop worryin."

He only scowled. Her headache had faded to a dull ache somewhere in the back of her head by now. She turned to Dr. Grey.

"What happened? Did you find out what's going on?"

"Yes. I did." He hesitated.

"Well?" Marie prompted.

"The reason for the pressure you felt was that there was a – a sort of link, like a cord plugged straight in –"

"Ah don't want to be rude, but could you just get to the point." Marie said, feeling anxious.

"The point. Right. This will sound strange, since as far as I know you have no telepathic abilities, but you're mind has linked itself to Logan's, very strongly. Which explains the shared dreams. Although, it does not explain why you've only shared his dreams and he hasn't gotten glimpses of yours."

"Wait a minute. Is – is a link like that easy to make?" Marie asked. "What your describin doesn't sound like somethin that would happen overnight."

"Oh, it's not. I wouldn't be surprised if the link has existed for years now. You just didn't notice it until now."

"How could we not?"

"Well, it can take a few _years_ for a strong telepath to build a link as strong as yours, and you're not a telepath, right? So however this formed, it's only just now gotten strong enough for things like the shared dreams to start occurring." He paused, seeming to think for a moment. "Can you remember anything strange happening before the dreams? Think a while ago. A long while ago."

Marie looked to Logan, who looked back to her, and neither responded for a long moment.

Hank spoke up after a moment.

"Correct me if I'm wrong," he said, glancing at Marie and Logan before turning to Dr. Grey. "But I distinctly remember Rogue –"

"Marie." She corrected him quietly.

"Ah yes, forgive me, my dear, I forget you prefer you're given name now. I distinctly remember Marie telling me about how strange she thought it was when Logan's memories began coming back in tiny bits and pieces just after the last time she absorbed him."

"That may actually be a direct side effect. This link is affecting all parts of your minds in some way or another. It's possible it stimulated the part of Logan's brain that holds his memories, in a way it hadn't been before."

"My skin." Marie said, and all eyes focused on her in curiosity. "My skin. Ah absorbed Logan so many times, so much, and Ah can't read people's mind like you can Dr. Grey, but my mutation acts something like touch telepathy right?"

"In a way, yes, it does." Hank answered that one. "Although it has more to do with electrical –"

"The point is," Marie cut him off gently, "he's the only person Ah've absorbed that many times. And he was willing every time, letting me practice on him with my skin. So that's it. That's where this 'link' came from. Right?"

"Most likely yes. When did you begin practicing with him, as you put it?"

"When Ah was twenty two, on and off, whenever he was around."

"That's where it began, then. When was the last time you absorbed him? I would say, and this is a barely educated guess, that it would've taken some three or four years for the link to start affecting you. To the point where you would notice, that is."

Marie had to think on that one.

"Around the time Ah turned…twenty…six." She turned to Logan, and they stared at each other.

"That explains a lot."

"Oh, yeah."

"What?" Dr. Grey asked, confused.

"When Ah was twenty six – we were having some problems –"

"I was a jerk." Logan cut in. "That was around when my memories started coming back, and all I remembered at first was death, and a whole lot of it, so I pulled away from her in the only ways I knew how. And she turned it around on me. Turned herself into me for a while there, and I thought it was just an act, but then she never could quite get back to normal."

Marie wondered, somewhere in the logical part of her brain that wasn't completely preoccupied with all that she'd just been told, why Logan had so easily just told Dr. Grey all of that.

She filed that away to think on it more later.

"Ah wasn't normal to begin with, what are you talkin about?" She says playfully. "Sides, you like me just the way Ah am."

"Well, yeah, that ain't ever been a question, Darlin."

She flashed him a smile before turning back to the doctor (the one that wasn't blue).

"So, uhm, what else exactly should we be worried about?"

"The truth? I'm not sure. Links like these are extraordinary and rare and a little different in every case. All I can tell you for sure is that the shared dreams are likely just the beginning."

"Just the beginning. That's great." Marie said sarcastically.

"I wish I could be more helpful. The best you can do right now is to just take things one day at a time."

One day at a time.

That had been Marie and Logan's mantra for the past year, whenever one of them would start to worry about something.

Take things one day at a time.

This would be interesting.

* * *

_**Thanks for all the reviews and favorites and alerts. They make my day. :) **_


	3. Taken

Kris hadn't called.

It was almost ten o'clock at night. Kris had left at about eight that morning, had called at ten-till-eleven to tell her mother she was going to spend a little time with a friend. Carolyn hadn't given her a direct curfew, never did anymore. Kris was 18 after all, an adult, and she had so far been respectful enough with her new found freedom to come in at a decent time.

So, this wasn't that big a deal, it wasn't _that _late yet, not when she had a two hour drive back.

But she hadn't called again. She'd promised she would call again.

And, like any good and loving mother, Carolyn was worried.

"Did you try calling her?" Victor asked her, and he was beginning to worry too, pacing around the room.

"Yes." Carolyn nodded. "About a dozen times. No answer."

"What about –"

"Yes, Ah called the school too; Ms. Munroe doesn't know what's goin on either. Says she knows who Kris was with, a girl named Lizzie, and she hasn't been heard from either."

"And I'll just bet they aren't doing much about it, either."

"Ah-Ah don't know, Ah didn't think to ask. Maybe Ah should call again –" Carolyn started to stand so she could go get the phone.

"Don't bother," Victor snapped, not too harsh, but enough to make her sit right back down, "did they tell you where the girls went?"

"To the nearest mall, Ah think, but – where are you goin, hun," she watched as he left the room, then stood and followed him, "yah ain't going to leave me here alone to worry about both of you, are yah?"

"I got a feeling." He said, and she knew arguing would be pointless, Victor always had to go with his gut. "Got to see what I can find out." He pulled her in for a kiss. "I'll be back, Rosie, you ain't got to worry about me."

"Good, cause Ah'm goin crazy enough just worrying about Kris."

"Going crazy?" He asked with a playful smirk. "You ran off with _me_ twice, you were crazy to begin with woman."

She rolled her green eyes, leaned up to place one last kiss on his lips, then pushed him out the door.

* * *

The sharp smell of sanitizers and chemicals assaulted her sensitive nostrils, and the lights were so bright that she instantly closed her eyes again, her head throbbing.

She was laying on something hard and cold – metal? – and it didn't take her long to realize that she couldn't move her arms, her legs, anything at all.

W-what's goin on, she wondered, frightened, as she pulled against the restraints uselessly. They didn't give an inch.

"Ah, I believe she's awake." A man commented calmly.

"Should I put her back under? We're not sure of how strong she is yet." A woman responded briskly.

"No, no, but be ready just in case."

"Yes, Doctor."

Kris forced her eyes open and was blinded by the bright lights above her for a moment. She sat up as far as she could, straining against the restraints, trying to see what was going on. She wanted to say something, but she didn't know what, and the only thing that made it past her lips was a dog-like whine.

"Now, now, just relax." The man – the doctor, she could see him now, he was short and thin with graying light brown hair – was pushing her back down to the table. The voice he was using reminded her of the voice one would use on a frightened animal. "Oh, my, look at those eyes. Beautiful, aren't they."

"Like a wolf's." The woman from before commented, and Kris could just see her. She was a little taller than the doctor and much younger, her dark brown hair tied back in a strict bun.

"Yes. Yes, particularly when coupled with those claws and her teeth. Perhaps we shall simply call her 'Wolf'."

"Wh-who the hell are you?" Kris finally found her voice.

"She speaks." The doctor said with a slight, and somehow creepy, smile, turning to look down at her. "I was beginning to wonder if you could. I am Dr. Reinhardt. I am the head doctor here; I oversee all of the subjects that are brought in, like you."

"B-brought in for what?" Kris said, although she knew the answer, and her instincts, every bone in her body, every tensed muscle, were telling her to run, run, _run_. "W-what are yah gonna do to me?"

"Certain – _experiments. _The details are none of your concern. All you need know that is that if you're a good girl, it will be easier on you."

Kris pulled against the restraints again, as hard as she could, but they still didn't give an inch. Fear was still prominent in her mind, but anger was naturally beginning to take hold as well.

"A good girl?" She snarled "Yah got me all tied up like some kinda – some kinda animal and –"

The doctor's eyes hardened as he reached out and roughly grabbed her chin, forcing her to look him in the eye.

"You are little more than an animal, and you will not talk back to me."

His tone was somehow both calm, over confident and entirely unafraid of her, and harsh at once.

It brought a little more anger to the surface, and she could feel that strange something, her animal, beginning to claw its way to the surface. She tried to hold it back, because she knew that it wouldn't do her any good now, but the fact was that it was stronger than her, so much stronger –

"So much feistier than the other one." The doctor went on. "She was much more, well, pathetic I'm afraid. Sobbing and begging for us to just let her go."

That reminded her suddenly, something about Lizzie, about being at the mall before everything went black, and –

The animal inside her was trying so hard to tear its way to the surface. It could feel that this was _bad bad bad _and it wanted out of there, _now now now, _and she unconsciously pulled at her restraints some more –

"Lizzie? Yah mean Lizzie?" She snarled at the doctor again. "W-where is she, what did yah to do her! Ah swear if-if yah'll hurt her Ah'll – Ah'll tear all yah're heads off!"

The restraints were beginning to give a little, she could feel it, if she could just – just a little more –

"My, my, what a magnificent temper this one has." Dr. Reinhardt grimaced. "Put her under again, and this time keep her that way until her tags are ready."

"Yes, Doctor." The woman from earlier responded crisply before making the stupid mistake of reaching across Kris to grab the syringe on a metal table.

Kris moved forward as far as she could and bit the woman's arm, clamping down on it as hard as she could, her sharp fangs sinking through her lab coat and just penetrating soft flesh.

The woman screamed, Dr. Reinhardt shouted something that Kris didn't bother really listening to, and then there was a sharp sting in her shoulder close to her neck and –

Darkness drug her back down, kicking and screaming, and then – nothing.

* * *

Marie really, really, _really _just wanted her shift to be over.

Normally she didn't mind working, particularly not the night shift. The diner doubled as something of a bar later in the day, and it could be almost fun at times, dancing around the place with whichever other waitress was working that shift with her.

But the feeling of wrongness hadn't gone away, even now that the nightmares had been explained. In fact, she was getting the feeling that the wrongness had nothing to do with the link. The more she thought about it, the more she came to realize that the odd feelings had cropped up _before _the first shared dream, just after she'd taken the twins in to see the doctor.

So, on this particular night, she really, really just wanted to go home.

"Is something wrong, sweetie?" The other waitress, a tall, thin woman with dyed blonde hair named Katie, paused just long enough to ask her. "You look tired. Those babies of yours keeping you up again?"

"No. Yes! Ah mean, no it's not the pups – babies!" Marie stuttered, trying to form a sentence. "Ah mean, Ah'm ok."

Katie looked skeptical.

"You don't sound 'ok' to me. You know, I can take over from here if –"

"Ah said Ah'm fine!" Marie snapped, then closed her eyes and let out a sigh.

"Alright, alright, don't have to get snippy with me. Just thought I'd ask." Katie huffed as she slipped back into the kitchen to get her next order.

Marie instantly felt bad for snapping at her. Katie hadn't done anything, after all.

What is wrong with me, Marie wondered as she went to check on one of her tables.

Katie came jogging back out of the kitchen, followed closely by one of the cooks, when the sounds of glass shattering and what had to be a table falling over reached their ears not two minutes later. They ended up stopping and just staring, along with everyone else in the room.

Marie was standing, enraged, over a guy – not a regular, probably a trucker just passing through – more than twice her size. He was flat on his back and just staring up at her, one eye already beginning to redden, his nose bleeding.

He'd been leering at her non-stop for the past twenty minutes. She'd had enough.

No one said anything, except for the guy she'd just decked, who muttered 'bitch' so quietly under his breath she wouldn't have heard it without Logan's senses.

The surge of anger that had made her hit the man intensified, and she could feel her claws begin to slide out.

If anyone noticed that the silverware began to levitate just a little above the tables, or that the rooms temperature suddenly dropped several degrees, they didn't comment on it.

She would've really given herself away as being a mutant right then and there, if not for the strange wave of calm that over took her.

_Take a breather, Marie._ Was that Logan's voice, echoing in her mind. _You got him good already. _

Her claws slid back in, and she soon found herself wondering why she'd even been about to let them out in the first place.

It took her a moment to notice the chill in the air and the silverware problem. She acted like she didn't notice, even as she gently placed the silverware back down on the tables.

She wondered if she was going crazy.

Katie approached her slow and cautious, as if Marie were a frightened animal.

"Why don't you just go home, sweetie." She said slowly, gently taking Marie's arm and pulling her back towards the kitchen.

"Y-yeah. G-good idea." She stuttered a bit as she followed the other woman.

…

When she finally made it back to the cabin, Logan was sitting calmly out on the porch, smoking a cigar. She'd been wondering the whole ride home whether she'd really heard him in her head, whether he had really calmed her down like that. Somehow it seemed backwards.

The look on his face as she walked up told her it really had happened, though. She pulled her leather jacket tighter around her as she sat down next to him on the wooden porch swing.

All was silent for a long moment, except for the creaking of the swing as Marie rocked them back and forth a bit.

"So." Logan said finally. "You going to tell me what that was about earlier, or, what?"

"The jerk – he'd been starin at me, it was givin me the creeps, that's all."

"Bullshit." He said bluntly, and she turned to him, a little startled by his tone. "I could feel you through that link thing, Marie, you were _pissed_."

"Ah know." She replied turning back to stare down at her hands in her lap. "Ah don't know what it was. Ah just – Ah've had this feeling for a while now. Like somethin's _not right_, I just don't know what. And it was especially bad tonight for some reason."

"So you decided to take it out on the first guy who looked at you cockeyed? I catch a glimpse of the guy and the next thing I know I can hear you in my head thinking you're going to shishkabob him." He was staring at her now, one eyebrow quirked.

She shrugged.

"Like you haven't done the same thing. On too many occasions to even count."

"Point taken." He replied. "Not that I blame you for decking the creep." He added, smirking now.

She giggled a little, but it died out all too quickly.

"That wasn't all, though. The room got colder, literally, Ah could feel it, and the silverware on the tables – Logan, anything metal in the room started floating without me even realizing it."

"Are you sure?"

"Pretty sure?"

"Has that happened before? When you get angry?"

"It's been a while since I _was _quite that angry, but no. Not that Ah remember. And Ah would've told you if it had."

Silence reigned again for a long moment.

"Maybe you should try – I don't know, playing with your borrowed powers a little. You told me once that Bucket Head and the Icecube were still swimming around up there somewhere ," he paused to place a kiss on her temple, "maybe they don't like being ignored for so long."

"Maybe." She replied before heaving a sigh and bringing her legs up to rest across his, snuggling up to him.

He puffed his cigar and she reached up to steal it from him, bringing it to her own lips as he chuckled.

…

Logan wasn't the only one with bad memories. Marie's rarely took the form of nightmares anymore after making peace with her mother, but sometimes…

_She's in her house, in her room, looking at a map. Talking to Cody, telling him all about the places she wants to take trips to. She can hear her mother down stairs playing piano. Cody teases her a little about the trips she wants to take. She turns to him, smiles at him where he's lying on her bed. And then comes the kiss. So sweet at first, and she's nervous because it's her very first. And then he's just staring up at her, veins popping out from his face and neck, and she can hear him, his voice, in her head, yelling at her and panicking. _

_And then she's standing in front of her father and crying, begging him to understand she hadn't _meant _to, it wasn't on _purpose_. He yells at her. Calls her the Devil's child, and it's so unexpected the first time he hits her, he's never hit her before, _never_. She cries out, falls to the ground. Her mother shouts in the background for him to _stop it stop it stop it, _even coming forward to try and pull him away, but he throws her back and picks Marie up, and hits her again._

_And again. And again…_

She woke up shaky and sobbing and unable to get a word out. Their alarm clock, lamp, and any other random object with metal in it was hovering precariously above where ever it was placed.

Logan looked around and grimaced, thankful that most of the big furniture in the house was plain old wood.

"Marie." Logan said quietly, but franticly. "You gotta calm down, Darlin…" He didn't know what to say, and he ended up pulling her into his lap and just holding her tight. She clutched his t-shirt and buried her face in it until the sobs died down, until she could breath and think again, and the objects that had been floating were put back down rather abruptly. Somehow, nothing broke.

All was silent once Marie quieted down. Logan ran a hand through her hair soothingly and they just sat for a while.

"Ah robbed them blind that night." She barely broke the silence with her very quiet confession. "Daddy always kept a couple hundred dollars hidden in an old bible on the book shelf in the livin room. And Ah took it. Ah took it and what was in his wallet, it was like three hundred all together. Didn't get me very far, but it was better than nothin. And it made me feel a little better."

Logan doesn't answer immediately.

"Your mom ever tell you what happened to him after they split?" He asks finally.

She knows what he's thinking, and she doesn't hesitate to answer anyways.

"He moved to Jackson. Beyond that she didn't care, so she doesn't know."

"Jackson." He muttered.

"That's a pretty big city."

"Oh, I'm sure I could weed him out."

"I know you _could."_

"Just say the word, Darlin."

She looked up at him, brown eyes meeting hazel.

"No. Don't. Just – just leave it alone. Please."

He nodded, albeit hesitantly. She gave him a kiss, and they settled back down to try for more sleep.

* * *

"Hank! Oh, thank the goddess your back!" Ororo pulled him into a hug, placing a kiss on her cheek.

"I got here as fast as I could, sweetheart." Hank returned her hug. "You still haven't heard from the girls, I take it?"

"No, we haven't. I talked to a friend in the police department, and he said there were several people claiming there had been some odd men at the mall that day, wearing what could've been military uniforms but – there's not much else to go on."

"Yes, well, I've brought some visitors with me who may be able to help with that, they should be here –"

"Dr. McCoy?" A tall, dark haired man walked up behind Hank, dressed nicely in a green collared shirt and black slacks. A woman followed close behind him, wearing a leather jacket and blue jeans, strikingly beautiful to spite the fact that she was obviously a tomboy. The pair could've been twins looks wise, except that the woman was much younger and had visibly lighter eyes.

"Yes, come in, please. Ororo Munroe, this is Dr. James Grey, and his sister Andi."

"Nice to meet you, Ms. Munroe." Dr. Grey held out his hand and Ororo shook it, then cast a look at Andi, who was scowling and did not seem particularly happy to be there. Dr. Grey glanced her way and nudged her.

Andi let out a sigh that sounded suspiciously more like a growl before extending her own hand.

"Right, nice to meet you." She said with a small, forced smile.

"Uh-huh, well, first of all please, call me Ororo. The students call me Professor Munroe, but beyond that it just sounds odd." Ororo gave them a warm, if a little strained, smile.

"I was just telling Ororo about how it's quite possible you could help us find the missing young women." Hank spoke up again.

"Well, I said I could try." Andi replied modestly. "I'm good with my telepathy, see, and I have a bit of a gift for sensing when another mutant is around. However, my powers won't do much good without a general idea of where the girls are."

Ororo shared a look with Hank. It'd been a long while since they'd had any strong telepaths visit the mansion.

"How strong is your telepathy, exactly?"

"Uh, well," Dr. Grey faltered a bit, apparently trying to come up with a good answer, "I haven't exactly put it to the test. I can tell you that it – it's not a matter of concentrating to use it. It took me years to get a good grip on my barriers so I'm _not _always hearing everyone else in my head."

Ororo and Hank shared another look. That told them all they needed to know.

"I think you might very well be able to help us." Hank said. "Would you mind staying here for a just a moment?"

"Not at all." Dr. Grey responded.

Ororo and Hank slipped out of the room and immediately began discussing what to do next.

…

"You just had to bring us here, didn't you Jimmy." Andi hissed at him. "I mean, damn-it man, what part of go in, _don't get noticed, _and get home as quick as possible didn't you get."

"Well, we weren't making much progress before I got to Hank, now were we?" Jimmy shot back. "It all starts with Kris, remember? We have to get the X-men there _before _she breaks out on her own."

"Dad's going to kill us for this. You realize that they'll remember this happening now."

"What, forty years from now? Professor Munroe won't even be –"

"Yeah, I know, she won't even be around," Andi cut him off, "but _Dad _will, and he won't forget!"

"Look, it'll be fine alright. They're going to come back in here any second now and then they'll ask me to try using Cerebro and I'll do it and find the girls and then that'll be it. Easy."

"Easy. Right. Except for the fact that thanks to you, we won't be able to get back for another _week_."

"Well, that week isn't going to end the world, whereas if we don't fix this whole thing…" Jimmy trailed off. She sighed, stood, and started pacing restlessly. He frowned, watching her. "By the way, unless you want to try explaining away your powers to them, you might want to start acting more like a twenty-something-year-old."

"Is..there..a certain way that twenty-something- year-olds act?" She quirked an eyebrow at him.

"I don't know any that scowl and _growl _like grumpy old women." He pointed out, mirroring her expression.

Andi tilted her head and opened her mouth but was barred from commenting on that as the door opened and Hank and Ororo stepped in.

"Dr. Grey, if you wouldn't mind following us? We have something to show you."

Jimmy sent a discreet, triumphant smile in Andi's direction.

_Real mature. _She sent him, knowing he'd hear her.

He resisted the urge to chuckle.

* * *

_**If you're confused, good. At this point, you're supposed to be. :D**_

_**A big virtual cookie to anyone who can guess who Jimmy and Andi might be. It probably won't be that hard to figure out, but then you all don't know what I'm thinking, so... :D**_


	4. And So It Begins

_**Warning: there's a small torture scene at the end of this chapter.**_

* * *

'_Uh, Jimmy…' _Andi sounded worried as she called out to her brother's mind. She'd been wandering around outside for the past few minutes for lack of anything better to do.

'_What's wrong?' _Jim answered, never pausing in his conversation with Ororo, who was telling him about Cerebro.

'_We have a problem. Uncle Vic's here, and he is _not _a happy camper.'_

Now Jim did visibly pause.

"Is something wrong, Dr. Grey?"

"It's Jim." He replied distractedly. "It's my sister, she says you have a," he paused for a fraction of a second to come up with a way to describe Victor Creed as if he were a stranger, "rather large and _unhappy _visitor about to storm through the front door."

"Victor." Ororo muttered softly. "I'm not surprised. Hank, could you –"

"Of course, I'll see what I can do." The furry blue doctor was already turning to head down the hallway.

"The father of one of the missing girls." Ororo explained, naturally expecting that Jim didn't know. "He's probably thinking we know something about all this."

"Something tells me he won't easily take the words 'we know nothing' as an answer."

"Probably not."

"Well, we'd better see if this will work, then."

Ororo nodded shortly before moving forward to punch in a code on the keypad that had been installed next to the door.

…

Hank stepped out of the mansion, shutting the door behind him as Victor stalked up. Andi came up from the opposition direction and paused a few feet away, tensing for a fight, because their Uncle had a tendency to always be looking for one.

Although, she couldn't blame him this time, his _daughter _had disappeared after all.

"We don't know anything." Hank said evenly, keeping calm as usual.

"Like hell you don't." Victor snarled. "She ran off with one of your frails."

"We're doing everything we can to find _both _of them, but in times like this a little _patience _is required –"

"I don't know if you people got any idea what they do to mutants, particularly ones like me and my girl," Victor advanced on Hank, who stiffened visibly, involuntarily tensing in the same way Andi was, "but if you do then you'll know why I ain't in the mood to be _patient._"

Hank looked him in the eye, seeming anything but intimidated.

"I am well aware of what theydo." He replied. "I can assure you, we all are."

"If you know something that you ain't telling me…" Victor trailed off, stalking forward and forcing Hank to back up.

Andi remembered off-handedly that even the mild mannered Hank had some feral in him. To spite his appearance, that was easy to forget sometimes. She wondered idly what he'd do if Victor decided to really pick a fight.

She ultimately decided she didn't want to find out like this.

"Heeey, kitty kitty, why don't'cha back off. You're all alone, I don't think you want to pick a fight here." She said, casually walking forward.

…

Jim walked through the open doors slowly, looking around as though amazed by what he saw – although, in reality, he _had _seen it before. More than that, he'd used it several times.

Ororo came up behind him when he made it to the end with the panel and the headpiece. She quickly explained how, to the best of her knowledge, it worked.

"If it doesn't work – don't hurt yourself trying, please. We haven't yet found a telepath strong enough to use this like the Professor did. I feel terrible just asking you to try this, but we've got nothing to go on..."

"I think I'll be alright." Jim gave her a confident smile before turning to put the head piece on. He could feel Ororo's eyes on him for a moment, then she hesitantly left him alone. As soon as he heard the doors shut, he closed his eyes and concentrated.

It didn't take long, he knew what he was doing, and soon he was opening his eyes back up to see the dome around him covered in red.

…

'_Jimmy.' _Andi called out to her brother again.

There was a long pause before her brother answered, and she could feel the frustration behind his words.

'_I can't – she's not – she's somewhere in Northern Canada.'_

'_Somewhere in – damn. That's helpful. Great.' _She answered sarcastically.

Another pause.

'_You shouldn't swear so much. Not very ladylike.'_

She let out an annoyed, cat-like growl. Victor and Hank turned their gazes on her. She grimaced.

"Uhm, my brother," she glanced at her uncle before turning to Hank, "it worked, but he can't find them for some reason. Well, not exactly anyways."

"Not exactly?" Hank asked confused as Victor narrowed his eyes at her. He looked about ready to snap, and her own eyes turned cat-like, her pupils thinning into slits as she readied herself for it.

"Northern Canada." She said, looking at her uncle. "That's all we can tell you, so why don't you just run along."

He seemed to study her for a minute, his gaze penetrating.

"Feisty little kitten. You remind me of someone –"

Bobby picked that moment to come out of the mansion, followed closely by Remy and Kitty, all of them looking none too happy to see Victor standing on the grounds of their home.

"What's he doing here?" Bobby asked. "And who's she?" He went on upon noticing Andi.

"Andi is a new friend." Hank replied. "And our guest here was just leaving." He said, in reference to Victor.

Victor eyed them all with narrowed eyes, looking about ready to pounce on one of them. Then, finally, he turned back to Andi.

"Canada?" He asked.

She only nodded.

Apparently satisfied at least a little bit, he spun around and stalked away.

…

Jim tried desperately to get a better fix on his cousin, but for some reason he just couldn't pin point her. He didn't want to concentrate too much harder, for fear he'd end up doing more harm than good.

He could tell they weren't too far from where their parent's cabin was. Maybe…

An idea formed in his mind, and he finally gave up on Cerebro, taking the head piece off and quickly heading back out to Ororo.

"Did it work? Did you find them?" Storm asked anxiously.

"Not exactly." He replied. "But I think I may know how we can. You wouldn't, by any chance, be able to get your hands on something that flies. A jet, maybe?"

* * *

The twins were sick.

Marie had been given a few days off after the incident at the diner, which made it a little easier. She took the twins to the doctor, who told her it was just a fever of some kind, gave her some medicine, sent her one her way, and all was well.

Except that it wasn't.

The babies had been restless and fussy, unable to sleep, keeping both Marie and Logan up with them. At least Logan got to go to work for a few hours, though. Marie was the one stuck at home with two constantly crying babies.

Then her mother called. Which, normally, wouldn't have been a bad thing. Except, Marie was exhausted and her Mama felt the need, as mother's sometimes do, to question whether she was really happy 'livin all the way up in there in the cold' and to comment on how she was 'just too smart to be workin at a diner like that anyways'. The cherry on top of that conversation was probably the way her mother asked if that 'big ole brute yah call a husband is treatin yah alright, cause you sound awfully tired over there and…' and Marie ended that call with a hasty goodbye, hanging up before her mother could say much else.

To top all that off, the _wrong _feeling she'd been having was only getting worse as time went on. Something wasn't _right, _she knew it, could feel it with every bone in her body. She didn't know how she knew, but it was driving her good and crazy.

It all added up to the scene Logan walked in on; two crying babies, a burning pot of chili, a ringing telephone, and a Marie that looked about ready to scream.

He strode across the room to take Abigail out of Marie's arms; the little one fixed big hazel eyes on him and quieted down some, ever her daddy's girl.

"That's right, sweetpea, you're ok. Daddy's here."

"Dad-dy." She replied with her favorite word, snuggling up to him.

James quieted down some as his sister did. They'd been doing that a lot lately. One would start crying, then the other would start screaming; Logan or Marie would finally get one to calm down, and then the other would easily calm as well.

He could feel Marie's frustration through the link now, the strange uneasiness she felt, her headache from the crying babies, her anger at her mother's sudden nosiness.

Marie closed her eyes and let out a breath, running a hand through her hair.

"_Thank you_, Sugah." She murmured, seeming to relax just a little at the blissful moment of silence. A pause, and then her eyes flew back open and she swore as she darted across the room to turn off the stove.

Logan let out a soft, somewhat incredulous chuckle, as he looked at the pup in his arms.

"I hope you and your brother will be smart enough _not _to mimic me and your Mama."

"Ah'm sorry!" Marie said, apologizing for – the burnt chili? What she'd said? He wasn't sure.

"Don't be." He said gently.

She took the chili off the stove and began mixing it to see if it was even remotely edible, then swore again. Apparently it wasn't. Logan put Abigail down next to her brother and crossed the room into the kitchen. Slipping his arms around Marie's waist from behind, he pulled her away from the stove and nuzzled her neck.

"It's ok, Darlin. Just relax." He murmured. She took a breath and appeared to try.

Then her phone started ringing again. She threw up her hands and growled. Logan scowled at the loud little piece of plastic on the countertop.

"Remind me again why we even need that damned thing?"

Marie didn't answer. She did, however, pull out of his arms to snatch the phone off the counter and hold it up as though she were about ready to throw it –

"Hey," he said, taking it out of her hands, "funny thing about these things, if you turn them off, they tend to shut up." He did just that before tossing it back down on the counter. "Darlin, if you feel like breaking something – why don't you get out of here for a while?"

"Right now?" She asked. "B-but Logan, Abigail and James – they've been crying and screaming and Ah don't want to leave yah here alone, and besides you'll need somethin to eat and –"

"And I can figure all that out on my own, just like you do somehow." He said, placing a kiss on her forehead, then giving her a light shove towards their bedroom. "Get dressed and get outta here _before _you break something."

Ten minutes and she immerged from their bedroom wearing straight leg jeans, her favorite lace up biker boots, and her leather jacket.

Logan took one look at her and didn't have to ask to know what she wanted. She came up to give him a kiss, he handed her the keys to his motorcycle, and then she was gone.

…

A long ride down some tree lined back roads saw Marie feeling no better than she had when she'd left.

Well, maybe a little better. Her headache was gone at least. But that persistent feeling of wrongness was still there, even stronger now that she had more attention to give it.

She wasn't sure what time it was and didn't care as the thought crossed her mind that a drink sounded good right then, something strong. So, she headed for the bar Logan went to when he was looking for a fight. If her favorite whiskey couldn't help, maybe she'd let her own feral out to play for a while.

Sometimes she hated having his healing. It took more than half a bottle of whiskey before she felt anything at all.

"You gonna be alright to get home, little lady?" The man behind the bar asked, cocking an eyebrow at her.

"Yeah, Ah'll be fine. Unfortunately." She muttered.

"I'd get outta here soon if I were you, then." He gestured towards the back corner of the bar, where some men were beginning to set up a cage. "This place is about to get pretty rough. No place for a pretty young woman like you to be."

"Oh, really?" Marie glanced back at where he was pointing and raised her own eyebrow as she turned back. "Says who?"

Almost three hours, another bottle and a half of whiskey, and half a cigar she'd stolen from Logan later, and Rogue was rather enjoying the way the men around were looking at her. She was taken, there would be no questioning that, but that just made teasing them all the more fun.

She was stalking around the cage, waiting for her next opponent, wearing only her bra up top. The men around couldn't seem to decide whether to scoff at this strange woman who was beating men twice her size to a bloody pulp, or to just enjoy the show.

One man in particular, however, was doing neither of these things. He was tall and clean cut and looked a bit more respectable than the other men around. He was staring at her intensely, almost glaring.

In a bar like this so late at night, his appearance and the look he was giving her was more than enough to put her on edge.

'_Marie.' _She could faintly here Logan's voice echoing in her head. _'You ok?' _

Through the link she also picked up that he was sleepy, and he was a little worried that she wasn't back yet.

Marie pushed Rogue back, frowning. What time was it anyways?

There was only one other fight left, and she finished it as quick as she could. The man who had been staring at her so strangely was gone by the time she managed to collect what she'd earned. She left the bar in a hurry, before anyone could start asking questions about how she could fight like she did, and was wary when she didn't notice the man around.

'_Marie.' _Logan called out to her again. _'Where are you? What's wrong?' _

She stepped out into the cold and hurried across the parking lot, but froze half way across it when she could distinctly hear footsteps following her.

They stopped when she did. She spun around, but saw no one. Shaking by now, not from the cold, but from adrenaline and fear, she spun back around and started jogging towards the bike, slipping her keys out of her pocket as she went.

'_Marie!' _Logan sounded almost frantic now, probably feeling her panic, but she didn't have time to answer him in any way as she felt someone come up behind her, seemingly out of nowhere.

She wasn't sure how she knew so certainly that the strange man was trouble. She just did.

She growled as she spun around and brought up a fist, but the man had spent the night watching her fight and was obviously prepared for a struggle. He caught her tiny fist in his large hand and squeezed with a surprising amount of strength, and she cried out as she felt something break. Ignoring the pain, she brought up her other fist; he caught her arm and twisted it, fluidly moving so he was positioned behind her. She elbowed him the ribs with her free arm, and was pleased to hear a bit of a crack. He let her go, stumbling back a little. She spun around with a kick to his stomach and he doubled over, but also managed to grab her ankle, twisting it hard, and she ended up flat on her back.

She was frozen for a moment as the world spun a little, probably a result of all the whiskey she'd downed.

He came toward her, and with another growl she threw up one leg with all her strength to land right where it would hurt the most, a stunt that promptly sent him to his knees, cursing her.

Having no desire to push her luck by trying to find out what this guy's deal was, she stumbled to her feet. She looked down at her hand and shook it out as it went about healing itself, grimacing as bones cracked audibly back into place. Limping just a bit on the ankle the man had grabbed as it too healed itself, she jogged over to Logan's bike, mounted it, and nearly ran the man over in her haste to get out of there.

…

"Hey, it's four a.m., where've you been." Logan met her at the door, worried and angry.

Marie brushed past him and didn't answer as she began to go around the house, making sure all the windows were locked and the curtains pulled, starting in the nursery.

Logan was confused now on top of everything else, but followed her lead, locking the front door, then the back, then checking the windows too, meeting her back in the den where they'd started.

"Now would you mind telling me what the hell's going on?" He demanded.

She didn't look him in the eyes.

"There was a strange guy – he was following me, that's all, he's gone now, but Ah just wanted to be sure."

"That ain't it, don't lie to me Marie. Where've you been all night? I felt your panic so clearly a little while ago _I _nearly popped a claw or six!"

"Why are you so worried about where Ah went," she snapped at him, "Ah'm fine, and Ah'm tired, so Ah'm goin to take a shower and go to bed."

He followed after as she headed down the hallway toward their bedroom and began undressing. He scowled, thinking over what she'd said and connecting it with how she'd been feeling earlier. Picking up her discarded sweater, he brought it to his nose and sniffed it.

It smelled of whiskey and one of his cigars. Well. They always did, that smell stuck to everything like glue, but it was fresher now, as if she'd had one. He grimaced.

"You didn't go out just to find a fight did you?" He asked, blocking the door way when she tried to head for the bathroom. "Because that was not what I was suggesting when I told you to get out of here for a while. I thought we agreed there were some things –"

"Ah know, Ah know, Ah'm better than that, too smart and too pretty and the last time you started to lecture me about it you sounded like Storm, and since Ah came this close to stranglin her, maybe you should just quit while yah're ahead."

He leaned in and sniffed the air around her. He could smell the whiskey on her breath.

"You're drunk. That explains… a lot." He crossed his arms, still not letting her back out of their bedroom.

She let out a soft, annoyed growl that pretty much confirmed what he'd just said.

"M'going to bed." She grumbled, spinning around and shutting the door in his face.

He stood there and stared at it, a bit incredulous. Then the twins began to cry. He ran a hand over his mutton chops, debating on whether to force his way back into their bedroom, or go take care of his pups.

The cries grew louder. He headed towards the nursery.

* * *

She wasn't sure how long they kept her out for. It could've been days for all she knew, although that probably would've been quite a feat with her healing, right?

When she came to she was strapped down to the same metal table, only this time it was quiet. The first thing she took note of, with more than a little panic, was that her senses seemed – muted somehow. The sharp, chemical smell wasn't nearly as sharp. In fact, it felt as though she could barely smell anything at all. Her sight was the same; it took her a minute to adjust to the fact that she couldn't read the labels on the strange metal cabinet across the room.

Lifting her head as far as she could, she properly drank in her surroundings for the first time. Or, at least tried too, feeling half blind as she did. What she saw was lots of white, and even more metal. Metal tables. Another metal gurney like the one she was probably laying on. Metal trays – her eyes widened at the sight of what was on them, scalpels and syringes and all kinds of other sharp metal objects. She shivered.

She tried to look down at herself. She was wearing a uniform of some sort, thin white cotton, short sleeved shirt with pants.

And she could see the tags resting on her chest. Dog tags. She could just barely make out the word 'Wolf' engraved on them.

She wondered if they even knew her name, or if she really was just the little wolf girl to them.

There was something odd about the tags, she noticed. She remembered seeing some dog tags in some random war memorabilia her father had lying around, and the ones around her neck were visibly thicker.

That led her to wondering how long she'd been gone, and if so had anyone noticed? Her Mama undoubtedly had and was probably a worried mess. She'd like to think her father would be worried too. Would he come for her? Would he be able to? She couldn't remember being taken, had she even been able to put up a fight? If not, what would her father have to go on in order to find her? Next to nothing. The thought made her stomach churn as fear gripped her tightly.

She was there for some time, staring at the ceiling, getting as creative as she could in her head thinking of what they could do to her. She was hoping vaguely that they'd be even a little less awful than what she could imagine. She doubted it.

One thing was for certain, though.

She would do her father proud.

She would _not _be one of those 'frails' he talked about.

Whatever they did, she would make it out of here.

She kept her gaze fixed on the ceiling when someone came in. She could hear the door open; it disturbed her that she could not clearly hear the footsteps approaching.

She tried to shove back the panic that again tried to creep up on her. She survived for sixteen years of her life _without _enhanced senses, and they probably wanted her for her mutation, so whatever they'd done, it couldn't be permanent.

Right?

"Ah, you're awake." She recognized Dr. Reinhardt's voice. He came into her line of sight just seconds later. "I have some questions for you. I'm afraid the information we have on you is minimal. If you're a good girl," she cringed at that, at the way he said it, as if he were talking to a dog, "then perhaps we can get you out of here and get you something to eat."

Her stomach was growling, but that was far from being the biggest thing on her mind.

"Oh, and if Ah ain't?" She snarled at him.

"I'm quite certain you don't want to find out." He replied darkly. She only glared. He went on, seemingly unaffected by it. "We have already figured out that you're a feral. The inhibitor we've given you should cover all the basics, which is why you're feeling half blind and quite deaf at the moment I'm sure."

Inhibitor. She ran down a list of every swear word she knew in her mind, but remained silent.

She went back to staring at the ceiling.

"We have no given name for you, at the moment. Care to share on that?"

She said nothing.

"Come now. It's an easy enough question to answer."

Another long moment of silence wherein she debated with herself.

"Victoria." She spat out finally, and then said nothing else.

"Victoria. That can't be it." He replied. She continued to stare at the ceiling. He sighed. "Ah, well, better than nothing I suppose. Moving on. How old are you? We were able to estimate that you are anywhere from seventeen to twenty years old."

She was fast approaching nineteen. She didn't tell him this, though.

"Victoria. I suggest you answer my question."

She said nothing.

He sighed.

"Your powers, are you willing to talk about them? We know you can heal yourself, and your tree hugging little friend let it slip that you could heal others as well."

That got her blood boiling. She somehow didn't think Lizzie, shy and quiet as she was, would've let anything _slip _to easily.

What had they done to her, then?

Kris still kept her mouth shut.

"Still nothing? Come now."

"Go to hell!" She burst out, snarling at him. Normally her eyes would've long since turned golden yellow, but with the inhibitor she wasn't sure they would now.

His eyes narrowed at her in anger.

"Very well. I wasn't expecting this to be easy. We're going to need some skin samples for testing. I suppose I can just take them now," he got up and crossed the room to take some latex gloves out of the metal cabinet before wheeling a tray of the sharp metal objects closer to Kris, "perhaps you'll feel a bit more talkative when I'm finished?"

She watched as he picked up one of the knives on the tray. Her heart began to pound in her chest, and she could _hear _it even with her now normal hearing. She began to shake, unable to stop herself as fear tied her stomach in sickening knot.

She could deal with pain. Really, she could, had learned to over the past year and a half of living with her father, of having him train her little bit by little bit, teach her how to be a good feral.

But they'd taken away her healing, the pain would linger, and _that_ – that terrified her.

Dr. Reinhardt's eyes had gone cold, his overall expression taking a turn for the frighteningly sadistic.

"Feel free to _scream _for me if you wish."

She would not scream. She promised herself that the moment the words left his lips, began chanting it over in her head as he came closer with the knife. _Do not scream, do not scream, do not scream…_

And then he was pressing the knife to her skin on her arm, and digging it in deep, slicing through her flesh like butter. Her fists clenched. _Don't scream, don't scream, don't scream, don't scream…_

He was carving into her arm, literally, and the pain – the pain was unlike anything she'd ever felt. Which was saying something, considering she'd been shot before.

_Don't scream, don't scream, don't scream, don'tscreamdon'tscreamdon'tscream…_

She pulled against the restraints, bit her lip until she tasted blood. Clenched her fists so hard her claws began to dig into her palms.

And Dr. Reinhardt continued on with icy cold blue eyes.

When he was done with the arm he'd been working on, he switched to her other arm, starting the process over again.

Tears spilled over, trailing down her cheeks. She began to feel dizzy, sick to her stomach, but still she refused to make a sound.

_Don'tscreamdon'tscreamdon'tscreamdon'tscream…_


	5. Caged

"Good mornin', sleeping beauty." Logan boomed as Marie entered the kitchen, and she cringed as she sat down at the table. He smirked at her before going on. "The twins seem to be better today. Even let me feed them. They're playing in their room." He set a cup of black coffee down in front of her.

She muttered a 'thanks' and brought the mug to her lips, taking a large sip. The burn of the hot liquid was welcomed, waking her up a bit.

Logan sat down across from her with his own mug, and silence reigned for several minutes until Marie finished her coffee. Fang pranced up to sit next to her and lay his big head in her lap, and she began petting him absently.

The caffeine coupled with her healing soon had her feeling at least half way human.

"Ah'm sorry." She told Logan quietly, staring down into her empty mug.

"You want to tell me what all that was about last night?"

"Ah would if Ah could."

"What's that supposed to mean?" He snapped lightly. She looked up, sending him a mild glare. "Don't give me that look." He went on gruffly. "You come back at four in the morning, drunk off your sexy little behind, and then lock me out of our bedroom like I did something wrong? I think you owe me an explanation."

"Ah wasn't drunk." She grumbled. He quirked an eyebrow at her. She huffed. "Fine. Not _that _drunk."

"The point being, it ain't like you to drink much at all, not since the pups came along." He leaned back in his chair and crossed his arms.

"Why are you lecturing – Ah'm a big girl, Logan, Ah think Ah'm allowed to have a drink if Ah want one." She'd stopped petting Fang by now, and the dog seemed to sense the bit of tension growing in the room, looking at Logan and letting out a small whine.

"Yeah, except it would've taken more than one to get past our healing. A helluva lot more. Come on, Marie. What's going on with you?"

She closed her eyes, rubbed her temples.

"Know what, Ah'm goin back to bed." She stood abruptly, her chair screeching against the wooden floors, making the poor dog next to her jump.

"Oh, no you don't." Logan stood as well and followed her as she headed back towards their bedroom. "I want an answer."

"Yah wouldn't understand." Marie grumbled.

"Try me." Logan said simply, leaning in the doorway.

"Ah've just been havin this weird feelin."

Logan quirked an eyebrow.

"Don't give me that look." She grumped. "It doesn't make sense to me either. Ah just feel like somethin's _wrong._"

"_What's_ wrong?"

"Ah don't know! That's the problem! And it's getting worse, too!"

"Alright, weird feelings, probably driving you crazy, I can get that, but that doesn't explain last night."

"What's to explain? Ah thought maybe – Ah just wanted to get the feeling to go away for a while. And it worked. Might even have been worth me feelin like crap right now. Ah did say Ah was goin back to bed, didn't Ah?" She glared at Logan and growled, in effect yelling at him to go away. He looked anything but intimidated by it.

"Well what about the way you came storming in here, checking all the windows, like someone was following you?" Logan replied. "I never even went back to sleep last night, was worried you'd found trouble."

Marie frowned. Her memory got a little fuzzy after leaving the bar.

"Some guy – he followed me out. He came up behind me and…" She trailed off, brows furrowing.

"And what?" Logan prompted. "Don't you remember? Jesus, how much _did _you have to drink? How'd you make it home anyways?"

She scowled at him.

"Ah kicked his ass and drove off and he didn't follow me, so that was the end of that. No, before you ask, Ah don't know what he wanted. He never even said anythin to me."

"And you didn't think to try and find out?" He asked.

"No, at that point Ah really just wanted to get out of there."

He studied her for a moment, looking almost like he was wondering if she'd lost her mind.

"You go back to work tonight, don't you?" He asked finally.

"Yeah. Why?"

He snatched Marie's cellphone off the table next to the bed and began dialing a number.

"Logan? What are you doing?"

"I'm calling the old lady, what's her name?"

"Miss Georgia." Marie replied absently. Miss Georgia was the older woman who owned the diner Marie worked at. The diner, which, consequently, was called _Georgia's. _"Wait. Why?"

"Because you ain't going into work like this."

"Excuse me? Are you _telling _me? And what do yah mean 'like this'? Logan!"

He ignored her quite thoroughly, wandering out of their room as he brought the phone to his ear. She watched him leave, incredulous, before rubbing her temples again. Her headache wasn't going away, and the wrong feeling was beginning to come back with a vengeance.

She decided to let Logan do whatever he wanted. She crawled onto their bed, burying her head in the pillows.

A few beats of relative peace were afforded her, the only sound that of Logan's voice, and the light murmur of Miss Georgia on the other end.

She was just beginning to fall back into a light sleep when he came back into the room, sitting down on the bed next to her.

"She's worried about you too." He said quietly. Marie wasn't surprised. The older woman really had taken a liking to her, for whatever the reason. "I asked her if she'd take the twins for today, and she said yeah."

Marie peeked up at him now.

"Yah didn't have to do that. Not like Ah can't take care of them if you're goin to make me stay home."

He shrugged slightly.

"Seems to me like you could use a rest."

"Ah'm not sure if Ah'll get any bein all by myself. That weird feelin Ah told you about just gets worse when it's quiet."

"Why don't you try meditating, like the doc told you?" He said, referring to Dr. Grey. "It should clear your mind a bit so you can tell _what's _wrong."

Marie scowled.

"What do you know about _meditating_?"

Their link flared to life for one strange moment as some of his memories surfaced. Memories of being somewhere in Asia, a beautiful woman teaching him how to meditate…

Logan kissed her forehead.

"Enough. Try it for me, alright?"

"Alright. Guess it can't hurt."

She buried herself back into the pillows and blankets. Logan left with the twins twenty minutes later.

* * *

Well, they'd definitely found something, although what it was, was any ones guess.

There wasn't much to it from what they could see, flying high above the grounds in the Blackbird. A small cluster of building's, fenced in and surrounded by trees, lots and lots of trees.

It would be the perfect location for keeping mutants being used as lab rats. The thought made Andi shutter as visions of white rooms and metal, metal, metal invaded her mind. So much metal and a big glass tank of water…

Jimmy, sitting next to her, must have noticed how on edge she suddenly was.

'_We'll fix this, I promise. We'll fix this and then none of that will have happened.' _He reached across to grab her hand and squeeze it.

He'd glimpsed what she was thinking of. She cursed him and their stupid twin telepathy link thing. He was too good at using it.

He chuckled softly at her. She rolled her eyes.

"Well, there's definitely something going on here." Bobby spoke up from his position up front, helping Ororo pilot the jet.

"This _would_ be the perfect place to set up a lab." Andi commented.

"It's not very big, though." Ororo said, peering out the window.

"That's just from what we can see." Andi replied a bit darkly.

"Well, we can't just storm in there without being sure that's where the girls are." Bobby pointed out.

"I hate to say it, but I agree with Bobby, what if the people down there are perfectly innocent?" Kitty spoke up from her position behind Andi.

"Jimmy said they were somewhere around here." Andi said, a little annoyed.

"He said he couldn't tell for certain, maybe he was wrong." Bobby replied reasonably.

"He's got a point, Andi." Jimmy spoke up before Andi could again.

"Well – what do you suggest we do then?" Andi said, glancing at her brother before fixing her gaze on Bobby.

Bobby heaved a sigh and looked to Ororo. She was really the one in charge, after all.

"We can't do anything about this now." She said, and Andi held back a groan. "I'm taking us back to the mansion."

…

"You're going to steal the jet." Jimmy said quietly, his tone matter of fact, as Andi slipped out of the room Ororo had given her. He'd known she was up to something because of the look on her face earlier.

"It ain't stealing, I'm gonna bring it back." She replied with a bit of a smirk. "If everything turns out like I want it to, they'll be too busy rescuing Kris to care anyways."

He sighed and shook his head as she turned and began walking down the hallway.

After a moment of deliberation, he shut his own door quietly before jogging down the hallway to catch up with her.

"I'm coming with you." He told her.

"Dad told me to look after you, you know –" Because she could heal, would be fine because she was always fine, but he couldn't.

"I wasn't asking." He replied evenly, and that was the end of that conversation.

He hoped no one could hear him, since they were probably all asleep. He envied the cat like grace that Andi had been gifted with. She was silent as the grave even in her ridiculous old leather cowboy boots.

Really, he envied a lot of the powers that Andi had been gifted with. Especially since she didn't always see them as gifts.

He shook his head, forcing those thoughts away. She hadn't asked for things to be like they were any more than he had. He knew it killed her, the idea that she would long out live him.

They were twins, for crying out loud; he was seeing gray hairs and she didn't look a day over twenty five.

It was one of the reasons _why_ she hated her mutation.

The code for the keypad next to the doors that led to the hangar and the jet never really changed apparently; he punched in the same code that would be used forty years later. The only difference in this picture, he realized, was that forty years later would see them buying a newer jet.

"So what exactly is your plan? You have a plan, right?" Jimmy asked as they strapped themselves in and began looking over the controls in the jet.

She began pressing buttons, starting up the aircraft, and not immediately answering.

"Andi…"

"I'm making this up as I go, ok?" She said finally.

"Comforting." He said sarcastically.

"You don't have to come."

He quirked an eyebrow at her. She shrugged.

"Hold on tight."

* * *

_There was something oddly familiar about the tall girl with long, brunette brown hair. She was dressed in a leather jacket. Blue jeans. Cowboy boots, they looked old and well worn. The girl reminded Marie a little of Logan, although that wasn't what was oddly familiar._

_She was a pretty girl._

_It was her eyes. There was something so, so, so familiar about her eyes. _

_Marie knew what it was. She knew that she knew. It was _right there_, but she just couldn't quite figure out…_

Marie started to get frustrated again, and the image blurred and then was gone. Again.

She swore out loud and decided she was done with this stupid meditating thing for today.

She looked over at the clock, and sighed. It was getting later in the afternoon anyways. Logan would be back soon, and probably the twins with him.

She had to resist the sudden urge to take Logan's bike again as the wrong feeling came right back. She wanted a drink.

She started a fire in the fireplace and settled for a beer.

* * *

They were cages. Made of metal and concrete, the guards and doctors and all other staff called them cells. But they were cages.

It was really one big room. The floor and ceiling and outer walls were concrete. The cages themselves, except for the ones at the very end, had three walls of thick metal bars. Like jail cells.

Kris, when finally taken out of the room where'd she'd been skinned alive, had been put in one of the cells at the furthest end of the room. All of the other cells were occupied, except for the one next to hers.

The other mutants looked on curiously as she struggled a little, growled a lot, and attempted to bite one of the guards.

She couldn't struggle too hard. They were gripping her arms, right where Dr. Reinhardt had taken series' of small chunks out, and the harder she struggled, the stronger they were forced to grip her.

It _hurt_. She was determined not to make it easy for them, though.

She couldn't manage to sink their teeth into them this time around, but she had a feeling she'd have other chances. They shoved her into her cell so hard that she landed on the floor, forced to catch herself with her hands. Which, somehow, hurt her arms further.

She crawled towards the back wall of the cell and sat against it – and then noticed all the other kids around, staring at her.

She was about to say something, anything, swear at them or just growl at them, anything to get them to stop staring. But then she noticed how young some of them were. Younger than her. Much younger.

A few looked no older than 12.

And suddenly she felt sick to her stomach. Who were these people? How could they be so cruel? What were they up to? Had they taken 'samples' from the little boy two cages away from her the same way they'd done to her?

She felt a tear slide down her cheek as the rage she'd been drawing on earlier gave way to fear and a sudden feeling of despair. They'd stripped her of her powers. She hadn't felt this helpless since the girls back in her hometown had cornered her in the bathroom that last time to tease her about – she couldn't even remember now. It had always been something with them.

The girl across from her was watching her intently, and looked like she maybe wanted to say something.

Kris lay down on the concrete with her back to the other girl. She pulled her knees to her chest, ignored the pain in her arms as best she could, and did her best not let another tear fall.

Crying made her feel pathetic.

She was determined to be anything but.

…

"Kr-Kris?" A familiar voice called out to her quietly. Kris started a bit, her eyes flying open. She hadn't realized that she had fallen asleep. Not like it had done her much good. She felt even more exhausted than she had to begin with.

"Kris!" The voice called again, and Kris sat up, wincing at the pain that moving her sore, raw arms caused.

"Lizzie!" Kris said excitedly, eyes wide as she stared at the blonde, now occupying the cage next to hers. The other girl looked ok for the most part. She had a set of tags the same as Kris's and an inhibitor on her wrist as well, and she was sporting a few bruises here and there, but she didn't appear to have been skinned alive like Kris had.

Lizzie was alright. This was the best news she'd had in days. The hopeless feelings she'd had earlier dissipated considerably.

"Oh sh-." Lizzie swore softly, seeming to eye Kris's arms, and Kris inexplicably giggled. Sweet, tree hugging, animal loving little Lizzie never swore. It sounded ridiculous coming from her.

"Did Ah hear that right?" Kris asked. "Ah swear Ah'm blind as a bat and at least half deaf too, so Ah ain't sure."

"Leave it to you to laugh anyways. You're crazy." Lizzie shook her head. "What'd they do to you?"

"Don't ask questions yah don't wanna know the answer to."

Lizzie stared at her with a strange look on her face, but said nothing.

"You got any idea where we are? How long it's been? They kept me in this one room and put me out for so long…"

"It's been about four days I think. No idea where we are. You can see snow and a whole bunch of pine trees when you looked out the windows in the cafeteria. Astrid," Lizzie gestured towards the girl in the cell across from Kris, "said it looked like Canada to her, but it's not like we can see much, so there's really no telling."

Canada. Lovely.

"Are you ok?" Kris asked, and Lizzie snorted.

"How can you be worried about _me_ when you're the one who's bleeding?"

"Cause my Mama taught me better than to be selfish."

This time it was Lizzie who let out an incredulous little chuckle.

Kris paused to look around a little more than she had earlier. The room, she noticed, had a single surveillance camera, in the front right corner of the room. This seemed odd, until she realized that they were surrounded by concrete, and that the only way out, assuming they could somehow get out of their cages, was a thick metal door at the end of the room.

Whoever ran this place didn't need to be too worried about anyone escaping. Not from this part of where-ever-they-were anyways.

"You're a feral." A quiet voice said. It was a statement, not a question. Kris turned to the tall, blue eyed blonde in the cell across from hers.

Astrid, Lizzie had said her name was.

"Huh. What gave _that _away?" She asked sarcastically, referring to the entrance she'd made, trying to bite the guards.

Astrid actually looked a little amused.

"What's your name?"

"Kr-…" Kris broke off, remembering what she'd told Dr. Reinhardt. "Victoria." She corrected herself. Huh. She almost liked that name better.

"I had a friend who was a bit like you." Astrid said. "Only she had blue fur and a cat's tail and ears…" She trailed off.

"What happened to her?" Kris asked, trying to sound a little more gentle.

"They brainwashed her. I don't know how, but I know they did. She works for themnow." Was the sad reply. "I think that's what happens to everyone eventually. Most of us – most of us don't make it out of here. Unless you're like my friend and have really useful powers. She was graceful like a cat, and strong, so they taught her how to fight." She paused, looking Kris over. "They could do the same to you."

Kris scowled upon hearing this. She looked around the room again, at all the others in the cages.

"Ah don't plan on bein here long enough to let them try." She replied finally. "We're gonna get out of here." She tried to put a confidence she didn't really feel behind the words.

Astrid tilted her head, giving Kris the same tentative look she'd been giving her earlier.

"No one has escaped from here before." It was a simple statement, no emotion behind it.

"Well. That's only 'cause they didn't have me. Give me a few days to see how things work around here. Ah'll think of somethin."

Astrid nodded, almost as though she believed Kris, as if she knew this would be Kris' answer and had no reason to doubt her.

"Crazy girl." Lizzie, who had apparently been listening in to their conversation, mumbled in Kris' direction.

Kris gave a smirk much like her fathers.

"'Crazy' might just be exactly what we need, don't yah think?"

* * *

_**Alright, so, I have a problem. Real life is about to kick my butt and hard. I might get one more chapter of this in, but after that I definitely won't be able to post for at least two months.**_

_**Why, you may ask?**_

_**I joined the Navy!**_

_**Ok, so I actually, technically did that months ago. I was hoping to get more of this story finished, but I'm leaving for boot camp in about a week and a half. So. I will try, really try, to get another chapter in, **_**maybe **_**two if I'm really diligent, but after that I'm afraid you won't hear from me for a long while.**_

_**Thank you, thank you, thank you, to all of you who have been following this whole story line so faithfully.**_


	6. Confusing Revelations

"Damn-it man, we'll never make it anywhere like this!" Andi growled as Jim fell into the snow for what seemed the millionth time. "Just let me heal you!"

Jim refused to take the hand she offered him, standing on his own and trying not to show how much pain he was in.

It was just his luck, getting shot not two seconds before making it to safety.

"I'll survive." He replied, not looking her in the eye.

"Jimmy…" She said in a gentler voice. "You look like death warmed over. Please let me help. We could make it to town in an hour if you do. Much longer than that and we'll freeze out here. Er. You will. Ain't real sure if I would, never really had the inclination to test that one out…" She rubbed the back of her neck.

"No. It's not as bad as it looks."

"It looks pretty freakin bad." She replied, worried.

He shook his head and began limping forward again. She eyed him for a minute before following.

"I'm sorry. This is all my fault, the whole idea was stupid, shouldn't have stolen the damned jet. Is that better? Will you stop being stubborn now?"

"I'm not a five year old, Andrea." Jim said, angry.

"You're kind of acting like one, James." She replied in the same tone.

He stopped again to glare at her. She quirked an eyebrow and crossed her arms.

A short, and very five-year-old-like, staring contest ensued.

Jim looked away first. Andi could smell his anger, the kind of pure rage that she and their Dad were known for.

"What's wrong with you?" She asked.

"Me?" He asked, sharply turning his gaze back on her. "I should be asking you that!"

"What did I do?"

"You-you waltz in like you're – well, I mean, you practically _are _invincible! And you forget that not everyone can heal. Not everyone is armor plaited!"

Their link flared to life as he inadvertently started sharing images of what had happened back at the compound with her. Images of her briefly being caught by a very large guard. Of the guard trying to carry her away like he should have been able to, would've been able to do to any _normal _female, even a tall and bigger boned girl like Andi. Except he couldn't, not easily enough. And then there it was, the sharp _snikt _of metal on metal resounding as Andi spun around with a roar like a lion to embed three metal claws in his stomach.

Wildcat, he thought. Not Andi. That was Wildcat's roar.

Fear. Andi can feel that clearly. Jimmy had been afraid of her. Was always a little afraid of her.

Andi clamped down hard on the link, then, worried he'd feel her own fear of herself coupled with, inexplicably, hurt.

She scowled to hide whatever else she was feeling and swore. Reaching out with her catlike reflexes, she snatched his bare hand and concentrated on the wounds on his leg.

Jimmy said nothing. Andi took a breath and fought off a sudden onslaught of dizziness. It took a ton of energy just to keep up with her own metabolism, much less to force someone else to heal in the same way, and they hadn't eaten or slept in twenty four hours.

She wasn't invincible like her brother had said. She'd crash harder than he did, eventually, if they didn't make it – well, somewhere that preferably wasn't the woods.

She paused, lost in thought for a moment, wondering if they were even heading in the right direction. For all either of them knew, they could've been going in circles. It was just starting to get dark, and unless they wanted to continue wandering through the forest…

"You ok?" Jim asked, worry winning out over his anger for the moment. She was, to spite anything and everything else, his sister after all. He'd felt just the barest hint of what she'd been feeling before she clamped down hard on their link.

She always had to be tough. He wondered if she knew just how much like their dad she'd become.

"Yeah, fine." She snapped lightly. "Is your leg ok now?"

"Yes, of course, it's fine." She began walking again, and he fell into step alongside her. "You know, we don't actually _have _to make it all the way to town."

Andi knew what he was thinking immediately.

"Oh. Oh, no."

"They could help."

"We'd have to explain all of this to them somehow, are you out of your f-ing mind?"

"We wouldn't have to tell, I could _show _mom…"

"Yeah, great idea. Really. Except for the fact that _I don't want to see her_."

"I know." He replied, his voice suddenly gentle, understanding. "I know, but she's not like we remember her. Not yet, remember? Dad said she was still pretty level at this point. And if we fix this – if we fix this none of it will have even happened. It wasn't Mama's fault. You have to remember it wasn't Mama's fault she lost it."

Andi ran a hand through her long, wavy, brunette hair and heaved a sigh. Swore, again, this time making her brother grimace.

"Ok. Fine."

Jim paused, looked around.

"Any idea how to get there?"

Andi closed her eyes and lifted her head, sniffing the air and trying to sift through all the other scents around. It didn't take her long to pick up on something, something burning. Wood. From a fire place maybe? She didn't know, but burning anything meant people, that was for sure. It was very, very feint, but she was pretty sure she could tell which direction it was coming from.

Jim watched her, unfazed by what might have been strange behavior to anyone else.

She opened her eyes and stuffed her freezing hands in the pockets of her leather jacket as she began trudging along again. Jim followed wordlessly.

* * *

Marie had run off. Again. She couldn't even remember doing it this time.

She could see Logan's bike out in the parking lot, looking through the window from her position sitting at the bar.

She wondered if it was really Logan's so much anymore. She'd fixed it up the last time. She rode it about as much as he did, if not more.

Probably more, lately.

Logan. He'd been distant lately. She vaguely remembered thinking that before grabbing his keys…

But why would that make her angry? It was all her fault. She'd been acting so off the wall, and she knew it.

She looked around the familiar bar, frowning.

How long had she been here? A few hours, maybe? More? What time was it?

One of Logan's cigars was resting lazily between her fingers. She frowned. She'd decided to quit with those. Hadn't she?

She shook her head. She wasn't thinking clearly.

She blew a cold chill over the end of the cigar, effectively putting it out.

Then she paused, glanced around, grimacing. No one seemed to have seen her do it.

Why had she just done that?

She decided it was time to go. Stood up. Nearly fell over as the room seemed to turn itself upside down.

That explained why she wasn't thinking clearly. She'd been drinking again. She couldn't even remember how much.

She sat herself back down, closed her eyes, took a breath. She'd have to wait the hour or so it would take for her healing to sober her up. Unless she wanted to wreck the bike again. Then again, if she did, she'd have to fix it, and she'd have a good excuse to avoid Logan so he couldn't start asking questions that she _still _couldn't answer.

She'd promised him no more drinking. He wasn't going to be happy.

She felt around in her mind for their link. It was glowing dimly in the back of her mind, like it always was. She caught a glimpse of the twins, sleeping peacefully in their room. Logan had apparently stopped to just watch them for a few moments.

They were getting so big. They'd just turned three.

Logan could feel her. Usually he was ticked when she ran off like this. This time, though – she caught glimpses of even more horrible feelings. Hurt. Guilt.

Guilt. He thought this was his fault, at least partly.

And then the anger was back. It hit her like a physical blow to the stomach, making her almost want to puke. And then he was gone, clamping down so hard on the link, blocking it so completely, she could scarcely feel him at all.

'_Logan!' _She screamed in her mind, fighting to open the link back up, fighting to make him understand that this wasn't _her_, that she couldn't even remember what she'd been doing. Why couldn't he see? _'Logan please! Logan! Logan!'_

…

"Logan!" Marie shrieked, shooting up in bed, shaking like a leaf and instantly fighting off a wave of intense nausea.

She closed her eyes and froze, taking deep breaths, trying to make the shaking stop, giving her body time to settle. Giving her stomach time to settle.

"Marie?" She heard Logan come into the room, sounding panicked. "What is it, Darlin? What's wrong?"

It took her a very long moment to realize that it was really all just a nightmare.

A very vivid nightmare. Of a future which she couldn't have easily imagined on her own. Why would she have?

"L-Logan… Ah-Ah…"

He looked into her eyes.

"Nightmare? Wasn't your father again, was it?"

"N-no, it wasn't daddy, it was – Ah'm not sure what it was. It felt so _real_."

"What felt real? Marie." He could probably feel her fear and confusion and panic. "Breathe, Darlin, breathe. What'd you see?"

"I saw – it was – I was in a bar and – the twins, they were toddlers! At least three years old! And you, you were so angry at me, I couldn't…"

"What? You're making no sense."

Marie put her head in her hands.

"Ah don' know. The dream made no sense."

He rubbed her arms.

"Tell me what you saw."

She took a breath and told him the whole dream, trying to explain everything, even how she'd felt.

"And then you closed our link, Ah couldn't feel yah at all! Yah were just gone…" She closed her eyes, fighting the irrational urge to cry. It was just a nightmare. Logan was right here in front of here, and she could still feel him in the back of her mind, and he wasn't angry at all, just crazy worried.

"Hey, it's alright. I'm right here, ain't going anywhere." He pulled her into his arms.

She buried her face in his shirt, relaxing in the warmth radiating off of him as his scent surrounded her.

…

"Where were you last night?" Marie asked that morning, turning to Logan as the thought struck her. She was at the stove, making pancakes as an (probably unnecessary) apology to Logan for how odd she'd been acting.

"What?" He asked, giving her a blank expression.

"Last night, when Ah woke up. You weren't there. You came runnin into the room a minute later."

"Oh. Pups got restless again. I'm surprised you didn't hear them."

"Did their fevers come back? They've been fussy again this morning too, but they don't seem sick."

He only shrugged, glancing at the twins, who were set up in the living room with some blocks. They seemed content enough for the moment, at least.

Marie was about to dish out the pancakes, and nearly dropped one of the plates in her hands when an odd noise sounded from the front door.

"Hey, just relax, will you?" Logan said, quirking an eyebrow at her as he got up. He walked to the front door and opened it just as the noise sounded again. "It's just the dog." Fang came prancing into the house, snow sticking to some of his fur, which he shook off like dogs do, much to the twin's amusement. They turned their big eyes on the wolf-dog and gave toothless smiles.

Fang then continued on into the kitchen and nuzzled Marie's leg. She let out a breath and chastised herself for being so ridiculously jumpy as she took out some leftover meat from the fridge and set it on the plate, a treat for the furry grey animal.

"Ah'm sorry." Marie mumbled to Logan as she set the pancakes down on the table.

* * *

"Just like I remember it." Andi murmured as they came up to the cabin, pausing a ways down the long drive.

"Same here." Jim replied, looking around a bit. "Do you remember –"

"The time I stole Dad's old bike?" She finished, turning to him with a grin.

"You and Mama had gotten into a fight, right?"

"When weren't we fighting?" Andi said, rolling her eyes.

"And I was trudging up the road because the stupid old car I bought broke down that day…"

"I'll never forget the look on your face when I went by!"

"You've always been the crazy one." Jim shook his head, chuckling.

"Yeah, just like you've always been such a geek." Andi giggled a bit, but sobered quickly. "Me and Mama never got along. You think that'll really change?"

"Dad said Mama was different. Before, I mean. I know it'll change." Jim replied firmly. "And it's Mama and I! You swear like a sailor and use the word 'ain't', the least you could do is be smart enough to say 'Mama and I'."

She rolled her eyes and threw up her hands as she headed towards the house.

"Freakin grammar Nazi." She grumbled.

"I heard that!"

"Good!"

* * *

Logan had just left. The twins still seemed content enough playing in the den. Marie was sitting in the kitchen and staring at the phone in front of her, trying to decide what she should do.

She had wondered aloud while she and Logan were eating whether she was starting to go crazy, really crazy. His response, aside from telling her that she _was not_ crazy, was to suggest that they were too isolated in their little cabin in the woods. Maybe, he said, they should go stay with her mother, or ask to visit at the mansion, just go someplace where Marie would be kept a little more occupied. That way she'd be able to take her mind off the 'weird feelings' she'd been having until they could somehow figure out _why _she was having them.

This didn't seem like such a bad idea. Really, it didn't. The problem was that her Mama would fuss over her like crazy if they went to stay with her, because that's what Mama's do. And the mansion – could she put up with Storm? No, Rogue would want to tear her to pieces, and Marie had too much else on her mind to think about controlling her feral temper.

Maybe her Mama's would be a better idea.

Fang jumped up suddenly and shot across the room like a bullet to begin growling low at the front door.

He didn't growl like that unless he sensed trouble.

Marie jumped up and was across the room nearly as fast, positive that she wasn't just being paranoid this time.

Her claws slid out. Fang got out of her way as she headed for the door, moving to the side so he was in front of the twins, who began to fuss a little.

Marie held out her hand a few paces away from the door, and the doorknob turned on its own. The door swung open and…

… and she stood and just stared blankly for a moment.

"Dr. Grey?"

"Er, yes, uhm, I-I'm sorry, I… _we _ran into some…" He closed his eyes and seemed to take a breath. "Can we come in? This is my sister." He added hastily, gesturing towards the tall, young brunette standing next to him. "Andi."

Andi rolled her eyes, presumably at her brother, and said nothing.

Marie's mind finally caught up with her and she realized that her claws were still out. She had over reacted. Again. A deep breath and they slid right back in.

"Yeah, of course, please come in." Marie stepped out of the way, looking them both over. The young woman, Andi, looked alright, but Dr. Grey looked pale and awful weak.

A rather alarming detail reached her nose – the all too familiar smell of blood. She looked the two over, eyes widening when she saw the blood stains on Dr. Grey's pants.

"Oh – are you alright?" She eyed the pair as they entered the cabin. He didn't appear to be limping or anything. "Come and sit down, Ah can have a look at that leg –"

"No, no, it's ok, I'm fine! Andi was – kind enough to heal me." He said, glancing at his sister before making his way over to a chair anyways.

"Oh." Marie said, brows furrowing a bit as she turned her eyes on the young woman. "You're a healer."

"Y-yeah," she exchanged a look with her brother, "I am." She replied, sounding awkward, as Marie took to staring at her.

She'd seen this girl before.

Those eyes. They were even more familiar now. Such pretty hazel eyes.

"Who are you?" She blurted without really meaning too, and the way the younger woman tensed – Marie prepared herself for an angry or indignant response of some kind.

She was a little surprised when the girl crossed her arms and again looked to her brother.

"You want to do the honors? I ain't as good with words as you are…"

"I don't know, maybe just spitting it out would be better this time, it's going to be entirely unbelievable no matter what we say."

"Spitting what out?" Marie growled softly.

Andi sighed.

"Whatever you say Jimmy." She said, and Marie wondered if she'd missed something. Andi turned her hazel eyes on Marie, then. "Just remember, you asked…" She paused. "Well, maybe I should start by saying – me and Jimmy – you think he's my older brother."

This threw Marie off a little.

"Well, of course, that's obvious, you can't be any older than me, peaches."

A ghost of a smile crossed Andi's lips, though Marie couldn't begin to fathom why.

James burst into tears, so suddenly that they all started a bit. Abigail followed suit all too quickly.

"Ah'm sorry." Marie murmured to her strange guests as she darted across the room to scoop James up. He automatically laid his head against her chest, and Marie began to purr softly.

It didn't even occur to her that this should've be odd to Dr. Grey and Andi, but that they didn't seem at all fazed by it.

James quiet down after a long couple of minutes, Abigail easily following suit, and Marie kept him close as she turned back to Andi.

"Ah'm sorry." She said again. "Now. You were about to explain?"

"Well it's –" Andi shook her head, staring at the baby girl on the floor at Marie's feet and swearing softly. "Complicated. Actually, 'complicated' is an understatement."

"We're the same age." Dr. Grey said. "Please, it's too much to explain, you won't believe us, but you'll have to believe your instincts. Just think about it. Our scents. Our – eyes. _Something _should be familiar."

"Familiar, Ah don't…" Marie grimaced, trailed off, glanced down at Abigail as Andi's eyes remained fixed on the pup – and Abigail stared right back, and her eyes. Big, pretty hazel eyes.

But that couldn't be. How? Why? It didn't make sense.

She remembered what Dr. Grey had just said and took a step closer to Andi, breathing in deep. Her scent. She'd know that scent _anywhere_.

Oh, hell.

"Andi. Adrea." Marie murmured, looking at the grown woman before her.

"Abigail Andrea Howlette." She replied quietly.

Marie looked down at the brown eyed baby boy in her arms and then slowly turned her eyes on Dr. Grey.

"Jimmy. She calls yah Jimmy."

"James Logan Howlette." He replied, also quietly.

Marie clutched James – her James, baby James – a little tighter in her arms as she sat down heavily into an arm chair. Abigail tore her eyes away from her much older counterpart and crawled over to her mother, climbing to her legs, clutching Marie's knee for balance, looking up at her Mama with those big hazel eyes.

Andi exchanged yet another look with her brother, but neither said a word, allowing their Mama time to process.

Several minutes passed.

"Ok." Marie said finally. "Ok. Alright. Ah-Ah believe yah. Ah think." Marie eyed Andi. "But you're – you look young."

Andi visibly bristled, giving Marie the impression of a cat with its hackles raised, and Marie filed that reaction away. Apparently, at some point in the very distant future, that would become a touchy subject.

"Yeah. Well, I got the healing."

"And I, quite obviously, didn't." Jimmy finished off, and he didn't seem as bothered by it as Andi was.

"S-so how old –"

"Forty." Jimmy and Andi replied in unison.

"Er. One." Andi added. "Keep forgetting we had a birthday just before coming here." She rubbed the back of her neck. "Things were kinda crazy…"

"Kinda? Kinda crazy? She'd only just come back after disappearing for – how long was it?" Jimmy asked, quirking an eyebrow at his sister.

"Screw. you." Andi growled.

"Six years. Six years, after running off because Ma-" Jimmy broke off very suddenly, looking to Marie.

"Because you went and got yourself killed." Andi said to her.

"Andi!" Jimmy exclaimed.

"What?" Andi growled again. "I ain't sugar coating anything! Told you I didn't want to come here, this was your idea, big guy."

Jimmy heaved a sigh before turning back to their mother.

"She wasn't always this much of a bitch." He said rather bluntly, prompting Andi to send him a glare to match Logan's on a bad day. Jimmy wasn't at all fazed by it. "See, it was just her and Dad for a while there, I think that's where things got a little messed up, and then she left…" Jimmy heaved a sigh. "Will you allow me –" He gave her a gentle mental nudge to tell her what he meant.

Marie set James down next to Abigail, and they stared at their older selves curiously, but didn't fuss anymore.

Then she turned to Jim.

"Go ahead…"

* * *

_**And this is it, for now at least. Again, thanks to all you who have been reading this. :)**_

_**P.S. sorry if the end seems a little rushed or awkward or anything, it's late and I just wanted to get this one last chapter up so it's over and done with.**_


	7. The Wolf

The wounds on her arms – they didn't look so good. They were swollen and the skin around them didn't look right. And they _hurt_, but she figured that was a given.

How long would it take for an infection to set in? She had no idea. She'd never been cut up this seriously before. Dr. Reinhardt hadn't seemed too worried about cleaning the wounds the day before.

Maybe he wanted to see if she could heal from it.

She decided not to bother mentioning it when the men came for them that morning. They probably wouldn't care.

They took her out along with all of the other mutants – at least forty others, Astrid mumbled that there were at least forty more to boot – to give them something that seemed like a pathetic attempt at a stew of some sort. Kris was starving at that point, far too hungry to care what she was eating as long as it was food. The cafeteria was large, all white walls and metal tables. They were watched carefully but an excessive amount of very large guards, and not allowed to talk.

The windows were small, but Kris could see snow, pine trees. Just like Lizzie had said.

Then they were all herded into some sort of large locker room where they were given cheap soap and practically forced to shower. Kris didn't take the bandages off of her wounds – she tried, but trying to peal the gauze away only made the pain more intense as it seemed to shoot up through her arm and shoulder.

She wondered idly why these people cared enough to bother with things like this anyways. The water was cold, and they were all left shivering, unable to regain any warmth in the thin cotton scrubs they were wearing.

Then they were shoved back into their cages. Kris guessed it was about an hour – it was hard to tell exactly, not like there were any clocks around – before they came for her.

During that time she had already asked Lizzie if that was how things always seemed to go here. Lizzie replied that yes, they were taken twice a day to the large cafeteria for food, and only every other morning for showers as far as she could tell.

She wondered if anyone had tried escaping before. She could easily think of several good opportunities to try it. Maybe if she could get some of the other kids to help… She was just getting ready to start asking about the powers of the other mutants in the room when the guards came storming in and straight to her cell.

"Show me your arm." One of them demanded, a big and burly man with a shaved head. She recognized him as the one she'd tried to bite a few days earlier.

She rose an eyebrow and just stared at him from her position, sitting against the back wall of her cage, knees pulled to her chest.

He was, apparently, not in the mood to play games as he took out an ominous black gun of some kind. Except, it didn't look like a gun exactly, there was no barrel for a bullet to come out.

She took a breath and forced her expression to remain the same.

"Come on, girly. Give me your arm and I won't have to show you what this little baby does."

She stared at him for a moment, then her eyes trailed down to the strange weapon of their own accord.

He took a step closer, and a soft, involuntary growl rumbled past her lips. Not wanting to push her luck for no good reason at that point, she finally stood up and held out her arm to him.

He inspected it closely around the bandages, and attempted to peel one off. Kris whimpered, unable to hold it back, and he mercifully smoothed the bandage back and then left it alone.

"Why would they let it get like that?" She asked.

"Don't know. Don't ask questions. Just do what I'm told. And I was told to see how your arm looked first. You're coming with us. Come quietly and I'll tell the Doc you didn't put up a fuss. Might go easier on you."

There it was again, her animal trying desperately to claws its way to the surface, angry beyond reason at these men who currently had such perfect control over her.

The Wolf wanted out _now_. Kris wasn't stupid, though, and now wasn't the time.

Now _is not _the time, she barked at herself, struggling to hold the Wolf back.

She kept her head down as she allowed herself to be led out. The same guard who'd inspected her arm was the one that lead her – he grabbed her wrist, where she hadn't been cut.

* * *

Explaining it all would have taken hours, time that they just didn't have at that point. Particularly not when none of it would matter if they could manage to fix it, to stop it all from happening the way it – did? Would? Should, even?

Andi scowled at herself. She didn't know anymore. She was beginning to think this whole thing had just been one huge mistake. Maybe they should've left well enough alone.

For all they knew, after all, it was all supposed to go down exactly as she and Jimmy remembered it. Maybe their Mama was supposed to go all wonky on them. She couldn't imagine why, but that didn't mean it wasn't possible.

Maybe Marie was _supposed _to throw herself in front of…

Andi shook the image from her mind and held up a fist, watching with a rather morbid fascination as her claws slid slowly out.

Maybe she was _supposed _to have run off for six years. Maybe, for some strange reason, the universe _needed _Abigail Andrea Howlette to have this stupid metal coating her bones just like her Dad had. Not that it could've been that important, she wasn't that important, the world wouldn't end if things turned out differently.

She didn't think…

The point was, how did they know that changing things was a good idea?

They didn't. Couldn't. They were going on the words of a girl whose supposed mutation involved psychic abilities, and even she hadn't been sure of what she was telling them.

And it bothered Andi, the fact that they were doing it anyways.

Jimmy got done showing Marie what little he knew from before he and Andi could really remember – things he'd gotten from Kris' mind and their Dad's, and a few others. All information that was willingly given, of course. Well. Mostly, sort of willingly. Jimmy really was very, very good with his telepathy, and wasn't afraid to be a little forceful if he thought it absolutely necessary.

Her claws slid back in, and she watched as her skin knit itself back together.

"… Things weren't always perfect, but we were a family. And then you disappeared – " Jimmy was saying to their mother.

"You mean abandoned us?" Andi grumbled. She was leaning against the wall near the kitchen, arms now crossed.

"… and things got a little mixed up." Jimmy continued calmly, without missing a beat, even as he glared at Andi. "Andi and I had just turned twenty." He turned his eyes back on their Mama. "And I was at college in England at the time – I really am a doctor, that wasn't just part of the plan, we didn't even _have _much of a plan for all of this – so it was just Andi and Dad."

"Actually, it was really just me and Dad for some ten years after that." Andi interjected again.

"Which, I am quite positive, is how Andi got to be so – well. I'm not entirely sure there _are_ any words to describe Wildcat."

Andi rolled her eyes.

"Wildcat?" Their Mama asked, confused, glancing back at Andi.

"It's her mutant name." Jimmy explained.

"You're probably right." Andi admitted. "Dad was – different after Mama disappeared, remember? Professor Munroe said he kinda went back to being like he was before he met Mama."

Marie looked at Andi, looking maybe a little horrified at this.

* * *

She was strapped down again, to a chair this time, with metal restraints. Thick metal restraints. As if they were expecting her to put up a struggle.

Oh, boy.

"Hello again, my pretty little Wolf." That voice was enough to make her stomach churn this time. He came around from behind her, pausing to inspect her arm. "Oh dear, that doesn't look too good, does it?" He said, not sounding at all worried. "There's nasty infection brewing here. Painful, I would imagine."

She only glared at him. He seemed almost amused by it.

"We'll have to get these bandages off. At some point. I think you'll be fine for a little longer though." He stepped back and came to stand in front of her.

She let out a breath she hadn't known she was holding.

"I'm told you didn't give my men much trouble earlier, either." Dr. Reinhardt went on, eyeing her, probably to see how she'd react. "I'm a fair man, believe it or not. Cooperation is rewarded."

She said nothing and avoided looking at him.

"For instance," he went on anyways, "if you'll be kind enough to answer the questions I put to you this time, perhaps todays little experiments won't be quite so – grueling."

She still said nothing.

"How about we start with the simple things again. Your name, perhaps?"

Still nothing.

"Victoria. It's a very pretty named, though old fashioned. Were you named after someone, maybe?"

Silence.

"Victoria. Answer me."

Kris refused.

"Very well." Dr. Reinhardt sighed, and gestured to someone behind them. "Lucia."

A brown haired woman came forward, and Kris instantly recognized her as the woman she'd seen when she first woke up here days earlier.

Lucia had her hair in the same strict bun, and she did not look particularly pleased to have to get so close to Kris again. She was none too gentle, pulling off Kris' bandages and inspecting her arms before pouring something – rubbing alcohol? Kris didn't know, but it _stung stung stung _– in them, presumably to clean them.

Kris' hands balled into fists. Of course she didn't make a sound.

However, she wasn't sure she really wanted to find out what would come next if she didn't give Reinhardt something.

"O'Connell." Her voice was quiet.

It was only half of the truth. Well. Not even half. Technically, her name was Kristine Victoria Creed, named for her father.

Damned if she was going to tell him that, though.

"What was that?" The Doctor asked, incredulous.

"Victoria O'Connell." She repeated, just a little louder.

"Ah. Good. Very good. Victoria O'Connell. I can work with that."

* * *

"Andi!" Jimmy outright growled, a strange sound coming from him. "You are not helping, you know."

Andi threw up her hands and rolled her eyes, but said nothing.

"N-no, but she's right, isn't she? Ah can see it, she's every bit her Daddy's girl." Marie said, her voice shaky.

"Yes." Jimmy sighed. "Yes, she is."

'_I think that's enough, don't you?' _He asked Andi through their link.

'_More than enough, yeah. What now?'_

'_We contact Professor Munroe, and _you _can tell her about the jet.'_

'_Great. If she's alive when we get back – you know, _back _back – she's going to _kill _me.'_

'_If it were possible I'm sure she would. Lucky for you, that isn't something you have to worry about.' _His response was a little bitter.

"Still pissed about last night, huh?" She grumbled out loud.

"What do you think?" He sent her a mild glare.

She rolled her eyes.

* * *

"19."

"Come again."

"Ah'm almost 19."

"That's a good girl. Nearly 19. A bit younger than I thought. Now. About your powers…"

"Ah-Ah can heal others…"

"Yes, that's what your little friend said. How do you mean?"

Kris paused to think on that for a moment, then turned to Lucia, allowing herself a bit of a smirk, even though she was still in pain. Actually, the smirk probably did well to hide that.

"How's the arm doin?"

Lucia looked to the doctor, seeming a little disturbed. The doctor pulled her closer so she was in front of Kris.

Lucia pulled up her sleeve to reveal the area where Kris had bitten straight through her clothes – and flesh. She pealed back a bandage, speckled a little with blood. The wounds were deeper than Kris had thought they'd be.

She felt no remorse for that whatsoever. In fact, her smirk grew, became more genuine, her fangs peeking out.

"Your hand." Kris snapped when the older woman hesitated nervously.

Lucia glanced at the doctor.

"Go on." He said. "She knows now what will happen if she's bad."

Then she, finally, reached down to grab Kris' hand. Kris wrapped clawed fingers around the older woman's.

The doctor, meanwhile, took out a strange device from his pocket, what looked like some sort of remote control. Kris eyed him discreetly as he punched in a code on the keypad. The device let out a barely audible beep.

"Consider this your reward for coming quietly earlier." He said as Kris could feel her powers being returned to her. Or at least, the ability to use them. They were always there, just suppressed as far as she could tell.

She could see the fine beads of perspiration on the face of the woman before her. Hear her heart beating more than a little fast in her chest. Smell her nervousness, her fear. Kris resisted the sudden urge to dig her claws in to the soft flesh of the older woman's hand, but did leave the woman to squirm a few moments as her arms, finally, mercifully, healed themselves.

When the pain was finally gone, she took a breath, closed her eyes, and concentrated on the woman's arm.

The woman gasped.

* * *

She'd shut him out.

He'd felt surprise from her over something a few hours earlier, and then Marie had closed the link, shutting him out. And it was making Logan a little on edge.

He tried to keep calm by telling himself that if she was in trouble in any way she probably would have left the link wide open. She would've wanted him to know what she was feeling, to hear her thoughts. And he'd only felt surprise from her, not distress or fear or anything truly alarming.

It helped enough that he was able to keep himself from walking out halfway through working at the shop. Marie wouldn't be happy if he did that and it turned out to be nothing.

He did spend the day, however, wondering what could be wrong this time. The only time that she had shut him out like this, even half way, was when she'd run off the other night and come back drunk.

Which is why he was half expecting her to be in a similar state when he finally did make it home.

He was utterly confused when he walked through the door to see her sitting calmly in the den, James seated in her lap, Abigail playing happily with one of their toys on the floor before her. Dr. Grey was seated across from her, and they looked to be having a serious conversation of some kind.

A young woman who looked a lot like Grey, except several years younger, was sitting next to him. She was pretty, dressed in blue jeans and a leather jacket with no makeup and an unruly head of dark waves pulled back into a ponytail.

He only noticed all of this because it provided such a strange contrast to the clean cut and business like doctor next to her.

"Hey Logan." Marie said, and he moved forward to place a kiss on her lips, then one on his sons head.

Abigail squealed when she noticed him, smiling wide and holding out her hands, and he was there instantly, picking her up without really thinking about it.

"You going to tell me what's going on around here?" He asked Marie, eyeing Dr. Grey and the girl next to him and purposely being even less friendly than usual.

"Sit down, Sugah." She said in response. "This is gonna take a while."

* * *

"Wonderful!" The doctor exclaimed, looking at Lucia's arm. "Just magnificent."

Lucia was looking between Kris' healed arms and her own, her nervousness increasing, probably because Kris hadn't yet let go of her hand.

"Wonderful." Lucia snorted softly. "She's a freak just like the rest of these _things _you call experiments."

Things. Is that what she was now? What all the others being kept here were? Just – things?

Kris glared at Lucia with eyes that she knew were turning golden yellow, and the older woman snatched her arm back, backing away quickly.

Dr. Reinhardt didn't seem to notice the exchange as he instructed the single guard in the room to let Kris go.

"We're taking her to room seven. Take it easy. I don't want her to be harmed." He paused, seeming to think that over. "Well. Not yet, anyways."

The guard came forward and undid her restraints. He was a pretty big guy, and at 5'4" she was not a large girl.

Under normal circumstances, the guard would have been able to hold her, easy.

Kris wasn't normal, even for a mutant. Lucia's comment had pissed her off, and the fear she could smell on the older woman, even from halfway across the room, was giving her a strange sort of rush.

The Wolf wanted to play.

As soon as Kris' arms were free she flew out of the chair, but was instantly caught by the guard who'd freed her. Instantly, not easily. He got a hold of just one of her arms. She swung around with the other, and her claws sliced through his black shirt and the flesh underneath. He groaned, but caught her other arm in a death grip. She leaned forward and bit his hand, hard. Now he let go. She brought up a fist and sent it sailing upwards, hitting his chin and slamming his head back before she brought up a leg right between his. That was enough to send him to his knees. Then she spun around with a kick to his temple, and he collapsed.

All this took seconds; her father had been drilling this stuff into her so thoroughly she scarcely had to think about what she was doing.

Dr. Reinhardt barely had time to scream for the other guards before Wolf pounced on Lucia with a snarl, pinning the other woman to the floor.

Lucia screamed and the world around them seemed to be moving forward in slow motion as Wolf took in the woman lying prone before her. She was shaking violently, a tear slipping down her cheek, smelling so strongly of fear, of panic, and Wolf…

All she had to do was bring one clawed hand across the woman's throat. That was it.

But then she wouldn't suffer any, now would she, was Wolf's sick thought.

Her claws did slice straight through Lucia's flesh – but it was down her chest, not across her neck, and this time Kris would most definitely _not _be healing her.

That was about the time that her surroundings started coming back into focus. The guards that had been waiting outside the room pounced on her now, holding her arms in a death grip and lifting her so her feet didn't even touch the floor.

She kept her wolf-like eyes trained on Lucia as the woman lifted her head to look down at the fresh wounds on her chest, then up at Kris, her expression horrified.

"Ouch." Kris drawled, mocking her. "Bet that'll leave a nasty lil' scar."

"Room seven." Dr. Reinhardt barked at the guards. "Now. And make sure she's restrained at all times, damn it!"

Kris glared at the doctor as the guards carried her out.

* * *

_**I'm posting this, so I'm obviously not at basic training. The reason why is a story that I really do not feel like telling again at this point.**_

_**So, I'm just going to move on.**_

_**Another chapter! Yay! Sorry it's short. I was having trouble with this one, writing and rewriting it and now I just want to get what I finally have up so I can move on. Reviews are appreciated as always.**_

_**Thanks for all the reviews I got last time. :)**_

_**Oh, and I posted a one shot about Andi, it's called **_**The Bike, The Cop, and The Angry Kitty. **_**It expands on the little bit in the last chapter about her stealing Logan's bike, and it was supposed to be a little funny, so go read it if you want a little laugh.**_


	8. Psychic

_**Disclaimer, since I haven't since the first chapter: If you recognize it, I obviously don't own it.**_

_**Oh, and I don't know if I ever bothered to mention this, but in this story I picture Victor as he was in Origins – because I liked him better that way. :)**_

* * *

"I still can't believe you _broke _the jet." Jim said, looking amused for a brief moment before his features twisted a bit in disgust as Andi lit up a cigarette. "I will find a way to make you quit those awful things, I swear."

"Oh, sure. You've only been _swear_ing that since we were teenagers." Andi tried to hold back a chuckle, a smile tugging the corners of her lips up to create a smirk.

"I could resort to more drastic measures, you know." Jim brought two fingers up to tap his temple, a mischievous smirk tugging at his own lips.

"Right. You could do that." Andi's expression melted into a scowl. "But then I'd kill you for messing with my head." A pause, and then she added, flatly, "again."

He raised an eyebrow at her before reaching down off the porch to scoop up some snow, which he hurled expertly right at her face – specifically her mouth just as she brought her smoke up to her lips again.

She started in surprise, dropping the cigarette, which had been put out by the snow anyways. He chuckled. She glared at him and added a cat like growl for good measure, then reached down to scoop up some snow herself.

The snowball came at Jim so fast, he had no time to dodge. It sailed into his chest and exploded, splattering snow on his face and down his shirt.

…

"Well, they're siblins, that's for sure." Marie commented with a chuckle as she watched the two start throwing snowballs at each other as if they were kids. Logan grunted a 'huh' in response before closing the curtains and turning to her. "Do you believe what they told us?" She went on to ask.

He seemed to think on that for a moment, running a hand over his mutton chops before coming to stand in front of her where she was seated on the couch.

"Do you?" He countered.

"Ah do." She answered without pause. "Ah saw her, Logan. Andi. Ah saw her days ago when Ah tried meditating, and she was familiar even then. Ah just know."

Another grunted 'huh' was his only response. She sighed and shrugged. She couldn't blame him for being skeptical.

"They could've explained more if they are telling the truth." He responded finally. "Like why're they here?"

"If the future's bad enough…" Marie looked up at him. "If the future's awful enough that they had to try coming back here to fix it… do you really want to know why? Cause Ah ain't so sure Ah do."

That seemed to give Logan pause.

...

"You know, it wouldn't have been so bad if we'd at least done what we went in to do." Jim sat down on the porch swing as Andi took her hair out of its ponytail to shake out any snow left over from the last ball of it he'd thrown. "Telling Professor Munroe about the jet, I mean. If we could have just found proof that Vicky or even the other girl is there…" Jim sighed.

Andi froze with her hand halfway through her unruly brunette waves.

"I'm a dumbass." She declared with an air of certainty.

He gave her a questioning look, being unable to think of a comment. At least, not one that wouldn't have her throwing another snowball at his head.

She shoved a hand in one pocket in her leather jacket, then the other. Then an inside pocket, finally she seemed to find what she was looking for.

He stared at the folded, thin set of papers that she pulled out.

"We barely got out of there, and then you got shot, and then we were trying to explain things to Mama, I forgot all about these." She sat down next to him and unfolded the papers. "Thankfully, even big metal file cabinets are no match for adamantium. If those scumbags had any brains to speak of, they'd stick to computers."

Jim read the top paper, quickly pulled it away to read the one underneath.

Then he broke into a grin and pressed a kissed to his sister's temple.

"Andi, I love you!"

"Course you do." She smiled back.

* * *

Room seven was yet another very large white room filled with metal. It was bigger than the one Kris had just been in. In addition to another chair with the same metal restraints, there was a big glass tank of water that looked like it could've been used for any number of things – most of which she really didn't even want to think about – and some sort of operating table. Some other rather ominous equipment lined the rest of the room, controls it looked like, though she couldn't begin to guess what for.

They hadn't reactivated the inhibitor, though it was still strapped tightly to her wrist. It didn't take a brain surgeon to figure out why. They were going to test out her healing.

She didn't fight the guards. They were big and looked mean. And pulling another stunt like the one she just had probably wasn't easily going to work a second time now that they knew what she was capable of.

Oh well. It had been worth it. Worth it to see the look on that woman's face.

Kris smirked to herself, thinking about it as the guards shoved her into the chair. One looked a little disturbed by it, glancing at his partner, but neither said anything.

Dr. Reinhardt stormed into the room, looking none too pleased.

The glare he sent her way had her worried. She tried to force her expression to remain calm, indifferent, but she was beginning to get the feeling whatever he had in mind for her would be more like punishment than an 'experiment'.

And then he pulled out a little black gun of sorts, the same that the guards carried she remembered, and all she felt was confusion.

The guards who'd chained her up stepped away. She could smell them start to sweat, getting nervous. Why would they be nervous?

Dr. Reinhardt stepped forward, and she glanced down at the whatever-it-was in his hand.

"This," he held it up, giving her a good look, "is really just a simple stun gun. Normally would use about the same amount of electricity as a police Taser, with a slightly longer shock. Very effective, no one would want to be treated to it twice. My men here, as I'm sure you've noticed, carry these. But this one is different. I've modified it, you see, so that I can hook it up to this chair – and, well, the result is something like shock therapy. Perhaps a bit more intense, and quite painful, or so I'm told." He was watching her carefully, probably hoping for a reaction of some kind. She tried not to look afraid. She really, really did. Judging by the small smirk he gave her, she hadn't done well enough. "This particular, uhm, _test_ is usually reserved as a last resort when one of my subjects gets too bold." He went on. "I hate to jump to it so quickly."

"Yeah right." Kris muttered under her breath, and was rewarded – a little unexpectedly – with a very hard slap. She closed her eyes as a single tear slipped down her cheek, which stung for only a brief moment.

"The woman you just _mauled_ is one of my very best doctors." Reinhardt barked. "I can hardly let you go unpunished." He paused, seeming to take a breath. "And seeing as my superior has already instructed me to test out just how much you can heal from, this will be productive in more ways than one." He disappeared behind her for a moment, presumably to hook up the little device in his hands, and then she could feel him lean down behind her close to her ear. "I would brace myself if I were you, because this, is really going to hurt."

Fear took over and had her heart pounding in her chest.

And then the switch was flipped.

* * *

It wasn't fair, somehow, that some people were just born geniuses. Seriously, just, not fair.

Andi couldn't remember what Storm had said the kids name was – Terry maybe? He was kind of familiar, maybe she should know it already – but he had what was actually a pretty cool, if extraordinarily geeky, power.

The point was, he'd looked the jet over where Andi and Jimmy had managed a rough landing in a too small clearing, and gone on for about twenty minutes about what was wrong with it and how it could easily be fixed. Only Hank McCoy seemed to know what he was talking about.

And then, somehow, with the jet still technically being broken, he'd gotten the undamaged engines going again. Using his mind. Techno-path, seemed to be the most apt title anyone could put to him, although Hank said it seemed more a form of telekinesis.

Apparently, he'd had the power for as long as he could remember.

He was barely ten years old.

Yeah. Not fair.

…

"His name is _Tony."_ Jimmy told her.

"Oh." It took a minute for it to hit Andi, why the boy was familiar. "Wait. Tony – Tony as in _my _Tony."

"How many other men named Tony do you know that have that power?"

Andi eyed the chubby boy sitting calmly in the front seat of the jet, hands resting lightly on the control panel. It was strange. One would never guess he was the one keeping the massive aircraft running.

Andi was a little freaked out for an entirely different reason though.

Her Tony was tall and handsome, a big boned Italian boy who liked wine and fast cars.

Her Tony had been her boyfriend at one point.

And there he was – twenty five years before he'd even really meet her.

"That's – disturbing." She shook her head, tearing her eyes away from her future lover to look at her brother. "Who's idea was this whole 'pop back in time' thing again."

"Dad's." Jimmy replied flatly.

"Oh. Right."

…

This… was a whole new level of strange somehow, Marie thought.

Not because Rogue seemed to have no problem being within reaching distance of Ororo Munroe. Something was different, Marie couldn't consciously put her finger on it, but whatever it was that had made the other woman just scream 'threat' simply wasn't there anymore.

It wasn't being in the jet, again, either. Even after being away for over a year, the general weirdness that came with a mansion full of mutants (weirdness that itself included the jet) wasn't strange at all to her.

No, what was strange was the fact that she was worrying about leaving her babies with their elderly baby sitter while she and Logan went off to rescue his niece – because her two very grown up babies had told them they had to.

Oh, yeah, and then there was the fact that her two very grown up babies were sitting in front of her in the jet. And the fact that the resemblance between father and daughter was a little too striking for comfort – scowls and all.

At least there was James. She did take some comfort in the fact that he would grow up to apparently be a good man. And smart too.

She wondered, idly, what could possibly have been so bad about the future that they had needed to risk trying to change it. Surely time travel, even forty years in the future, couldn't be a simple thing.

She was tempted to ask, at least a part of her was. Another part shuttered at the thought of finding out.

In the end, she decided to keep her mouth shut.

…

Jim wondered if his mother had any idea of how loud she was projecting her worried thoughts. He hated feeling like he was intruding somehow, but it took a moment for him to put up barriers strong enough to keep out anything louder than the murmurs that people usually thought in.

He smiled a bit, though, hearing her last thoughts. Thoughts about wanting to ask all the questions that must've come automatically, meeting someone who knew what would happen.

Well. Could happen in their case, anyways.

Part of him wanted to tell her. Wanted to warn her. Because maybe, if this didn't work out somehow, maybe telling her would…

No. No, no, no. He couldn't think like that. He closed his eyes, took a few deep breaths, and concentrated on the mental image of the walls surrounding his mind.

His mother's voice faded, and then disappeared, and he heaved a relieved sigh.

* * *

If this was his doing, she almost hoped Victor really would kill him.

Carolyn Rose had spent the past days pacing around the house and feeling utterly useless as she worried, worried, worried about her daughter, and she wasn't sure she could take much more of this.

She had a feeling, a really horrid feeling, that her husband – would be ex-husband already if she could just get her hands on him long enough to make that happen – was behind this. A part of her didn't really want to believe that, hated to believe that anyone could be so cruel as to turn the child he raised as his own into some kind of lab rat.

But then, things like this happened all the time in all reality, didn't they? Victor told her all the time that she was too optimistic, too willing to see the glass as being half full. Too willing to believe that everyone had a heart, some only a little less than others.

She was beginning – just beginning – to wonder if maybe he was right. Maybe some people were just – just bad men.

Her thoughts, quite abruptly, jumped to an entirely different track as she remembered Kris's boyfriend, Ben. He'd come over earlier that day looking no less worried than she felt, asking where Kris had been and was she ok?

His parents were still out of town, he was all alone just like she was.

She stood from where she'd been sitting and folding (and rather compulsively refolding) some laundry, and grabbed a phone off of a nearby table. Ben had kindly left her his number, telling her to call if she needed anything. Perhaps just asking him for a bit of company couldn't hurt. Give her a good reason to get up and cook a proper dinner, occupy her mind for a while.

It rang just as she was about to punch in his number. She was so startled by the loud and sudden noise that she ended up dropping the phone. Thankfully the room she was in had a carpet.

Taking a breath to calm herself, she reached down and didn't think to check who was calling, bringing the phone to her ear.

"Yes, hello?"

"Rosie."

"Vic! Where've yah been, yah haven't called in days! Ah've been worried sick!" She scolded angrily.

"I know where she is." He replied calmly.

"Where? Do you think she's alright? Are you goin to go and get her?" The questions came tumbling out before she could stop them.

There was silence on the other end for a long moment. She bit her tongue to keep silent, be patient.

"Course I'm going to get her out." He replied finally, as if that should've been obvious. "I ain't gonna lie to you, Rosie. She probably ain't alright. But she's no frail, she will be. Just got to get her back home."

A tear slipped down Carolyn's cheek.

"W-what do yah think they're doin to her?" She asked quietly, her voice wavering.

"I'm not going to be the one to guess. Would you really want to know?"

She wouldn't, she realized that as soon as she asked.

"Just – bring her home. Please, Victor, bring her home."

* * *

They turned the inhibitor back on. She was starving and cold and her hair was wet now and they had turned the inhibitor back on.

She usually didn't mind the cold. Really, she didn't. But this – this was just miserable.

"Kris?" Lizzie's voice just reached her now normal ears, quiet and hesitant, as soon as the guards left.

Kris didn't answer, could think of nothing to say to the other girl. She felt a little dazed, far removed from her own body somehow, as she stood there shivering.

The girl across from her, Astrid, was eyeing her strangely. Kris locked eyes with her for a moment.

"It's warmer at the back wall." Astrid said quietly, pointing upwards. Kris turned slowly too look where she was pointing. Sure enough, there was a series of heating ducts up far above them, lining the perimeter of the room. "The rooms so big the heat doesn't do much, but it's better underneath them."

"Th-thanks." Kris murmured. Astrid nodded, and Kris turned to walk woodenly over to the back wall. She leaned against it, then slid down it, pulling her knees to her chest.

She could feel Lizzie's eyes on her now. She curled tighter into her little ball and tried to think of things that were warm. Her bed back home. The height of summer in Georgia, the sun shining bright in the sky. A big bonfire, like the ones her old boyfriend used to have.

Her mother's banana bread, fresh out of the oven was the last thing that came to mind, for reasons that were made apparent when her stomach growled audibly.

"Hey." Lizzie murmured, and Kris looked up to see that the other girl had positioned herself as best she could so that she was blocking Kris from the view of the room's only camera. She was reaching out towards Kris, a small bread roll in her hand. "Didn't figure they'd have given you any food. At least it's something."

Kris managed a small smile as she took the bread, thankful for small mercies and friends like Lizzie.

She felt a little better after eating it. She was beginning to feel a little of the heat from the vents above her now. At least she wasn't shivering anymore.

"You're hairs wet." The blonde next to her stated after a moment, making it sound like a question.

Fresh memories of the water tank in room seven came to mind. Kris curled tighter into her little ball. Well, at least they'd confirmed how much a freak she was.

She wasn't sure how long they'd kept her under the water, but she knew by the looks on the guards faces when she made it back to the land of the living that it had been freakishly long.

"I'm never going near a swimming pool again." She replied finally, and Lizzie didn't ask.

Astrid was still eyeing her from across the room.

"Why are yah staring at me?" Kris snapped lightly, standing and walking to stand at the front of her cage.

The other girl opened her mouth, then closed it, seeming to think a moment on what to say. Then, finally, "Have you ever gone camping?"

Kris stared at her blankly. "Have Ah ever…gone…campin?" She repeated, wondering if she'd heard the other girl right.

Astrid just nodded.

"Yes." Kris replied slowly. "My older brother used to take me." Astrid nodded in a way that made Kris think she'd already known the answer would be yes. "Why do you ask?"

Astrid shrugged, "Might come in handy, being all the way out here." Kris and Lizzie were both giving her blank looks now. "You know," she went on, lowering her voice a bit, "if we were to get out of here. Most of us in here, " she gestured to the others around in the room, "are from the city. We certainly wouldn't know the first thing about surviving out in the woods."

Kris snorted.

"I grew up in Georgia. Things were a little different."

"You know how to build a fire, though." It seemed more like a statement than a question, and Astrid seemed to notice this, as she hastily tacked on a, "right?"

"Well, sure, if we could even find wood out in the snow that would burn."

"And if you got that inhibitor off, you'd be able to lead us out of the woods. Towards a town."

"I'm – I'm still learning how to use my senses like that, it's not quite as easy as it sounds."

"You'd be more helpful than you know." Again, it was a statement, as though the other girl _knew_. "At least," she added, again seeming to remember herself, "I believe you would."

Kris's green eyes locked on to Astrid's pale blue ones for a moment.

"What's your mutation?" Kris asked.

"I'll bet you've already figure it out."

Kris nodded slowly before turning to retreat to the back of her cage, sitting against the wall with her knees to her chest again.

Lizzie looked between her and Astrid, appearing to be a little confused.

"What just happened?" She asked Kris.

Kris shrugged, "Hell if I know."

"What do you think her mutation is? She does that all the time, talks about stuff that could happen just like she knows it will, but…"

"Wouldn't be that hard to believe." Kris said, assuming Lizzie was thinking the same thing as her.

"How would that even work?"

"How can you move half a massive old tree usin yahr mind? How am Ah ok right now when the wounds on my arms were infected this mornin?"

It was Lizzie's turn to just shrug.

"Ah'm pretty sure Ah should be dead right now." Kris went on. "Since Ah ain't, why should it be too hard to believe that Astrid…" Kris trained her eyes on the blue eyed blonde across from her. "Why should it be too hard to believe she can see the future?"

And things never stopped getting more interesting, did they?


	9. Liberation

"_They don't think anyone will just come right through the front door like this." _Tony was telling them through their radios, prompted by Ororo as they approached the place. It had been his idea, he'd half begged Storm to let him help. _"There's not as much security there." _His voice hadn't even begun to change yet, and he didn't sound as confident as he would when he was older, but Andi was still easily reminded of her boyfriend, set up with his computer, typing away furiously. Apparently, some people never really changed. For someone like Tony, that was perfectly ok.

Approaching the compound quietly, Andi and her father went ahead of the others – probably acting on a similar instinct, being able to hear more and see better than the others in dim light of the no longer visible sun.

Do I always think so much like him, she wondered.

"He's right." She whispered, seeing precious few guards patrolling the area just outside the front gates. They watched for a moment, and Andi had to suppress a chuckle when the two large spotlights scanning the area blinked out.

"_I think I can get that gate open, too."_

"Kid's good." Logan muttered, raising an eyebrow at the few guards before turning back and gesturing for Ororo, Marie, and the others to get a move on.

They jogged forward cautiously, but turned it into a full on sprint when they heard the telltale click of the gates opening, sending the guards into a full on panic. Andi was the first to get there, slinking up behind the nearest guard as he began talking into his radio.

He turned at the last minute. She brought up a fist and punched him square in the face. He collapsed.

_How you can manage that so easily is beyond me._ Her brother commented through their link.

_Armor plaited, right? There are _some _advantages._

He chuckled back.

Logan was quick to take care of another one of the guards, using his claws when the man came at him with some sort of weapon – a gun, but not a gun.

Then she turned just in time to watch her mother rather calmly hold out a hand towards the other guard, smirking when his radio was snatched out of his hands by an unseen force. Andi backed away a bit, as did Logan, neither wanting to get in the way when Marie went all human magnet on them.

A flick of Marie's wrist saw the radio flying back to hit a wall a few feet away, shattering in the process.

The guard held his hands up in surrender.

Jimmy came forward and knelt down next to the guard Andi had knocked clean out, pressing a finger to the man's temple. His telepathy was strongest when he could touch – which was saying something, because it was ridiculous strong to begin with.

"There's at least eighty mutants here." He said, sounding incredulous, before opening his eyes to look up at Andi. "And their scattered all over this place, we need to move fast."

Ororo came forward, looking around a bit with a grimace before bringing a finger up to the small radio device in her ear.

"Tony?"

"_There's a separate system for all the buildings," _the kid sounded excited in a way, _"but there all connected with these hallways, hang on, hang on," _the door to the building just in front of them swung wide open, _"it's used to store stuff I think, there shouldn't be anybody around." _

Ten years old, Andi shook her head as she followed the others in, he was only ten years old.

By the time she met him…

Shaking her head, she tried to force any thoughts of her Tony out of her head. She needed to focus.

He was right, there was no one in this particular part of the compound right now.

"Any chance you could flip the light switch?" Ororo asked.

"_The cameras might not catch you with the lights out." _Tony replied. _"And there're _a lot_ of cameras. I can't get to them, though, I'm trying, but... Oh, uhm, go left."_

They were already making their way down the hallway with Logan in the lead. It was a good thing the kid also knew how to hide their radio signals.

"_Permission to, uhm, be creative, Miss Munroe?"_

A barely audible chuckle escaped the Weather Witches lips.

"Be my guest, Tony." She murmured back.

They went left. Still no guards in sight, but there was a door at the end of the hallway, and there was light spilling in from one small window on it.

"_Cool, don't freak out."_ Tony replied. _"This should clear out a ton of the guards."_

A few seconds passed, and then suddenly alarms began blaring, deafening loud. Obnoxiously typical red lights began flashing, and the door at the end of the hall burst open, five or six very large men barreling through it, the same little weird not-guns already in hand.

Marie, who had already pushed her way to the front, held out a hand just as she had earlier. The not-guns flew back and hit the wall, some of them breaking, others landing unharmed on the floor, but all effectively out of any ones easy reach.

The lights cut out completely. Every one froze in surprise.

Then they came back on, but seemingly only at half power, and the alarms had been silenced.

Andi's eyes landed back on the guards in front of them. They all looked perfectly panicked. Well, this would be fun.

* * *

The main control room was nestled right in the middle of the compound. Tony, as good as he was, was still just a kid, and had hit an anticipated snag. The trick he'd pulled with the alarms was very effective in clearing the path to the main control room, but it was really just that – a sort of parlor trick. Beyond that, he was stuck until someone made it there.

Andi had volunteered for this job. She was good at sneaking around. Very, very good.

The guards were in a panic. Most of them seemed to have been ordered to the front gate, where her Aunt Kitty and Iceman (she scarcely knew Bobby Drake beyond that) along with Dr. McCoy were attempting – and apparently very much succeeding – to make a distraction.

She had briefly entertained the idea of suggesting that Jimmy pull one of his 'Jedi' mind tricks, freeze up the guards or something, but he didn't like doing that unless it was absolutely necessary, and she didn't blame him.

The panicked guards plus the darkened hallways made it easy for Andi to sneak along without any real confrontation. She prowled the hallways, keeping close to the darkest corners, hiding in them when someone passed by, feeling her pants pocket every now and then to make sure the strange little device was still there. Apparently, when she got to the control room, all she had to do was plug the little flash drive type thing in and it would introduce some kind of virus, allowing Tony fuller access. Hopefully, he'd be able to open the holding cells.

Then she, along with Storm and Marie and her father, could start directing the kids out.

It seemed simple enough, until she hit a long patch of hallway that was well lit. She could only guess that the door at the end led to the control room.

She wondered if Tony's little trick earlier had shut the cameras down…

…

"_I had it! What happened, I don't…_" Tony's voice sounded muffled, far away. _"What's – what's happening?" _

Andi didn't really know what had just happened, and so couldn't have answered him even if moving was an option. Which, it wasn't, yet.

Everything was blurry, moving in slow motion as her fried nerves tried to heal themselves, and _damn _that hurt.

_Andi! Andi! Andi, answer me, what just happened! ANDREA! _That was Jimmy's voice, forcing its way into her hazy thoughts.

_Good question_, she found herself thinking in response, but she wasn't sure whether she'd actually sent the message to him or not.

Things were starting to come back into focus. She was on the floor, flat on her stomach. There were three guards in the room. Well, three others and two on the ground across the room…

Because she'd knocked them out after one had gotten her with one of the strange not-guns…

Oh. Stun guns. Her healing had easily gotten through one. Three at once, though, had apparently been enough to put her down for the count… well, for a minute or two anyways.

The little flash drive hit the floor inches in front of her as one of the men appeared to be ready to stomp on it, obviously attempting to render it useless. Her handed darted out without her really thinking about it, knocking the little piece of plastic away when her fingers couldn't quite manage to wrap around it yet. The man swore.

_Come on_, she growled at herself, _MOVE!_ She staggered to her feet, swayed a bit, shook her head to try and clear it.

"Don't these freaks ever die?" One of the guards snarled as another came forward to try the stun gun on her one more time.

Ok. She'd about had enough now.

Wildcat grabbed his wrist with one hand, snatched the gun out of it with the other, sent it careening into a wall, then unleashed the claws on her now free hand and sent them straight through the guys stomach. He went limp. She removed her claws and stepped away calmly as he fell to the floor, dead, unlike the first two. Then, with little hesitation and a roar, she pounced on the man who'd spoken moments earlier and did the same to him. Two down.

She looked up at the last one, claws still out, daring him to try something too. He didn't. Instead, he took out his stun gun, dropped it, then held up two shaking hands. Wildcat contemplated killing him anyway.

"I hate working here anyways, lunatics, all of them…" He stuttered, and she rolled her eyes.

A low, cat like growl accompanied the word "out."

He didn't need to be told twice.

Andi swiped the flash drive off the ground and plugged it back in.

"Should be good now." She said into her radio, turning to lean back against the console and take a breath, even as she kept one eye on the door.

"_Yes, I got it, awesome." _Tony sounded not a little relieved now that someone had managed to answer him.

_What just happened? _That was Jimmy.

_Three nasty stun guns just happened._

_You alright? I felt…_

_Yeah, I'm getting there. _She replied quickly, bringing up a hand and flexing her still stiff fingers. _Hey Jimmy, don't let them get near you with those things. I'd rather not have to waste energy healing you._

_Thanks. I think. Ok, we've been all over this place, there's no sign of Vicky yet, but…_

Footsteps, just audible even to her sensitive ears. She stiffened and darted across the room to hide just behind the wall next to the door.

_What is it now? _That was Jimmy again, sounding about exasperated as she was beginning to feel.

She didn't bother to answer as whoever was coming was only feet away now. She clenched her fists. Just a little closer…

She turned the corner swiftly and brought up a fist, as yet clawless, and sent it flying towards the persons face. She barely got a glimpse of the person, could tell only that it was a man and he was _big_, before he caught her wrist, easily maneuvering so that he was behind her and twisting her arm. A large, clawed hand came up to hover over her neck. She froze for a second, staring down at it and breathing in deep, picking up the man's sent.

Oh. Well, maybe they should've expected this.

She popped the claws on the hand that was trapped behind her, and they sliced through something, she wasn't sure what and couldn't have cared less anyways. All that mattered was that it surprised him; he let that arm good. She brought it, along with her other arm, up to grasp the man's large shoulders and, putting all of her own sturdy amount of weight into it, lunged forward and sent him flying over her. He landed hard on his back.

She only just managed to stay standing. She shook out the arm he'd twisted and came to stand over him. He looked a little bewildered for a moment. She smirked, arms now crossed, one hip out to the side.

"Is that the best you got, old man?"

Her uncle got to his feet, one eyebrow raised, looking amused more than anything else.

"Not even close." He said, clearly challenging.

For a moment she was tempted to pull him into a fight. It was – or, would be at least – something she'd be sure to do whenever he was around, because he and her father were – would be? – the only two people who wouldn't hold back with her because she was a girl.

But he wasn't exactly her uncle yet, she reminded herself, and they had bigger things to worry about.

"They haven't found her yet, but this place is huge, there's parts we haven't gotten to yet."

He hesitated, but only for a moment. There weren't many options, anyways.

"Lead the way, kitten."

"Name's Andi." She grumbled as she began doing just that.

He gave a low, rumbling chuckle.

"I like kitten better."

He always had – would? She rolled her eyes and tried not to think about how confused she was beginning to make herself.

* * *

Marie felt like a lab rat. Like they were all lab rats, navigating a giant maze. They had, they were pretty sure, managed to direct at least half the kids out and towards the jet. Although, the jet couldn't hold everyone at once, and what to do with the kids when they got them out… well, they hadn't quite managed to plan that far ahead. They'd figure it out, she supposed, they always did, somehow.

The rooms they were looking in – large, white walled rooms lined with five thickly barred cells on either side – were all empty, the kids having bolted the moment Tony unlocked their cells. The guards were gone by now, as well, for the most part. Probably they'd bolted the minute the kids had a chance to gang up on them. Not that any of them seemed particularly eager to stick around, even if it had meant a chance for some payback.

"_I'm heading your way now, it's just me. Oh, fair warning, I've got a… er, friend." _Andi's voice came through their radios, and sure enough footsteps could be heard echoing down the hallway just as she said it. Marie was more than little startled to see her calmly leading _him _down the hallway.

"Friend?" Bobby asked, incredulous.

"Kris is his daughter, Bobby." Marie pointed out.

"Good point. I'm surprised he wasn't tearing through here days ago, come to think of it."

"Bobby, just don't." This from Kitty. "We don't have time to waste."

"What, I just think it's funny…" He trailed off when Kitty, Marie, and Ororo all glared at him.

"Funny?" Victor asked, eyebrow raised, dark eyes trained on Bobby.

"Well, you and Logan are supposed to be so good and hunting people down." He gestured towards Andi. "But your daughter goes missing, and it's her and her brother that…"

Marie missed whatever was said next - Victor took a few threatening steps towards Bobby, and Marie figured Bobby deserved whatever might come next anyways – because Logan had suddenly disappeared.

She wandered down the hallways a bit, and frowned when she picked up on the same thing that he probably had.

Blood. A lot of it.

_Logan?_ She called out through their link, a little worried, as she began jogging down the hallway. There was an open door just down the hall, and she caught a glimpse of a water tank…

_Marie, don't –_ he tried to warn her, but it was too late. She came through the door and stopped short right next to him, frozen, eyes wide as she took in the scene before her and tried to place the familiar scent mingling with the fresh blood pooling in three different areas.

The body furthest away was so mangled she could scarcely tell whether it was a man or a woman.

"Come on." Logan said, nudging her back towards the door. She tore her eyes away from the gruesome scene and forced herself to follow him as he headed quickly back down the hallway, passing Victor on their way out.

He looked almost proud. If Marie was right about that familiar scent… how could he be _proud _of her? Sure, they knew nothing about the victims, but she wasn't sure anyone deserved… that.

_Logan… _She began, speaking to him through their link, but she didn't know how to go on. He paused, slipping an arm around her shoulders.

_I know… _He replied, sending her his own conflicted feelings, letting her know he understood her perfectly, but wasn't surprised like she was. A scene like the on they'd just stumbled upon would've been all too typical of his brother. The idea that Kris could've done it, particularly if she'd been tortured in some way over the past few days, wasn't too far-fetched. It was unfortunate, but true.

She heaved a sigh, pulling away from him and walking off down the hallway.

"She ain't here." She told Ororo as she came up to her. "Ah think we'd best try combin the woods. That's where Ah'd go if Ah hadn't been able to follow the others."

"You're white as a sheet." Ororo said, sounding worried. "What's wrong, what did you find?"

Marie glanced back at Logan as she heard a door being closed and Victor's heavy footsteps coming back down the hallway.

"Nothing." She said finally, turning back to Storm. "Let's just go."

* * *

_**I am so, so, so sorry this took so long, and that this chapter is short and, if I'm honest, kind of crappy. I got stuck on this one, I have no idea why, but I had to rewrite it several times. Anyways, the next chapter is pretty much written already, I just have to look it over one last time. I might post it today, if not it'll be up tomorrow.**_

_**Reviews are, as always, very much appreciated. :)**_


	10. Revenge

It was late the next day when they came for Kris again. Not that she could tell how late, of course, but it was sometime just after they were brought back from dinner.

Lizzie had been gone half the day. Kris wasn't sure how worried she should be about that.

She'd spent most of that day curled up at the back of her cage, staring at the floor and trying to decide whether she wanted to ask Astrid – well, that was the problem. She wasn't sure exactly _what _to ask, and she just couldn't quite get any words out.

She regretted it when the guards came and carried her straight to room seven. After what had happened the day before, she didn't want to go anywhere near that room. Obviously, she struggled. But one of the guards leaned down to murmur to her.

"Down, girl. What're you gonna do if you do get away, huh?"

She couldn't deny that he had a point. She tried to calm herself a little.

Dr. Reinhardt was waiting when they got to room seven. He was standing in front of the operating table Kris had noticed the day before. There was someone on it, but he was standing just so she couldn't see who.

"Let me begin," Reinhardt spoke calmly, "by saying that you, my dear, have already proven to be rather…unique."

Kris only stared at him, unsure what to make of this statement. Coming from anyone else, she might just have thought it a compliment.

Coming from him – she had no idea what he was getting at.

"And I do mean that in the best possible way." He went on. "I have seen others with impossible strength, others with such abilities. You are not the first feral I've come across here. But, none of them could have survived what I put you through yesterday. They would have been – well. Fried, quite frankly, before they ever made it to the water."

He paused as though to let her process that. Her eyes darted to the chair of their own accord, then to the water tank.

Kris felt an echo of the shock that had come with the chair tear through her body, and shuttered involuntarily.

"You have something – something _more _than what they had. Something, I think, with what little I've learned over the past few days, is very much so mental, although you are obviously physically much stronger as well."

"Why are you telling me this?" Kris blurted, feeling beyond confused.

Reinhardt smiled his creepy smile, "I'm telling you this so that you can be assured we would take very good care of you."

"W-what?" She spluttered, and she really didn't like where this was going.

"Patience, my dear, I intend to explain. You see, we could use someone like you on our side. You're healing factor alone would make you invaluable. Your display yesterday tells me you've already had some training and can fight, well. You would be somewhat volatile, with that magnificent temper of yours, but then that is at times just what we need! Unfortunately, that is also why it's important that you come willingly."

"Willingly?" She asked, trying to wrap her mind around all of this.

"Yes. You see, we do have certain – ways to force things" his tone changed briefly to one of distaste, "but, because you're mutation is every bit as much mental as it is physical – well, why mess with a good thing, right?" And there was that smile again.

Kris just glared at him, anger and disgust and hatred making her blood boil as the Wolf howled with rage somewhere in her mind.

"Oh yes, and there is one other thing, something I was instructed to look into immediately –"He moved to the side to reveal who was laying on the table behind him, and Kris cut him off with a low, angry growl when she saw who it was.

Lizzie was lying there, her unmistakable long golden waves splayed out and spilling over the side of the table.

She was pale, deathly pale, and Kris swore her heart stopped. It took her an agonizing moment to realize that Lizzie was breathing, if only barely.

"What'd you do to her?" Kris snarled.

"Poison." He said simply, and Kris began to struggle against the guards. "Now, now." Reinhardt chided. "I suggest you listen to what I have to say first. She hasn't got much longer."

Kris just glared at him as he reached down to punch in a code on the device he already had out. The guards' grip on her arms tightened to the point of being painful as her strength and her senses were returned to her.

"This is just a little test, not to see if you can heal her, as I'm quite sure you can." Reinhardt wasn't done yet. She'd tear his throat out, given the chance, she was beginning to hate the very sound of his voice that much. "No, we're more concerned with the effect this will have on you. Now, in a moment the guards will let you go, and you will be allowed to work you're, uhm, magic. I warn you, though," he said, pulling back his lab coat to reveal a pistol, resting in a case at his side, and Kris' eyes widened. He removed the pistol, and pointed it at Kris briefly, but she barely flinched. She knew now. It would hurt, yes, bad, but a bullet wouldn't kill her, wouldn't come close. He smirked and move to train it on Lizzie. "If you try anything other than healing her…" He trailed off. Kris didn't have to be told twice. "Am I clear?"

"Crystal." Kris spat quietly.

Reinhardt gave a short nod. The guards let her go. She wasted no time in sprinting across to her friend.

At first she wasn't sure of what to do. Usually she had something visible to focus on healing, but other than being so pale, Lizzie didn't physically look to be in any danger.

She was though, Kris could tell, could feel how feverish she was, could see how flushed her cheeks were to spite how pale the rest of her skin seemed to be.

"The clock is ticking, my little Wolf. I suggest you do something." Reinhardt said, and Kris ignored him, closing her eyes and taking a deep breath, willing anything to happen.

She wasn't sure, at first, if it was working. A few moments passed where nothing at all seemed to change, although Kris knew her power had turned itself on. Forcing Lizzie's weak body to heal was proving to be even more difficult than that time she'd healed her brother, though.

Lizzie was even worse off, then. The thought terrified Kris. She tightened her grip on Lizzie's arm and willed all of her own healthy energy into the other girl.

Finally, slowly, it seemed to be helping.

Kris could tell it was working mainly by the energy she could feel draining from her own self, although Lizzie did begin to look a little better, her skin returning to its natural hue – still pale, but with an unmistakable, healthy pink tint.

She wasn't as warm anymore either. In fact, she began to shiver a bit, which was a lot more natural in the big cold room they were in.

When Lizzie's heart – which Kris had been able to hear it racing unsteadily – seemed to return to a more normal pace, Kris finally let go.

"Incredible." Reinhardt had lowered the pistol a bit and was just staring at Lizzie, whose eyes fluttered open as she took a deep breath.

Kris didn't move immediately, just stayed where she was, closing her eyes and breathing deep and hoping the sudden onslaught of dizziness would pass.

It did. She wasn't at full strength anymore, but she was alright.

"K-Kris?" Lizzie murmured, her brows furrowed in confusion as she looked up at the brunette hovering over her.

Kris opened her mouth to say something at the same time that she could feel the guards moving forward to restrain her again – probably at some unseen cue from Reinhardt – but never got the chance to as all Hell picked that moment to break loose.

The room lit up with oh-so-typical flashing red lights as alarms began blaring. Reinhardt was across the room faster than Kris would've thought he could move. She barely blinked and he had his back to her at one of the computer stations across the room.

The flashing lights had given the guards pause; they hadn't gotten a hold of Kris again. The opportunity this distraction created was just too perfect for Kris to pass up.

She had to try.

She spun around with a kick, sending the guard closest stumbling back, doubling over. Grabbed the other's wrist, dug her claws in and twisted as hard as she could, then brought a knee up where it would hurt the most (forget about being fair, Victor had taught her. Your too small, and we weren't built for that, just play to win). He fell to his knees. She grabbed the back of his neck and shoved him forward, just hard enough; his head sailed into the metal table Lizzie was lying on. It was bolted to the floor. He fell back and hit the tiled floor beneath them, unconscious.

Seconds, this all took, she tried not to think. Instinct, Victor's voice echoed in her head, do what _feels _right.

The other guard seemed stunned by it all. He'd run into the glass water tank after stumbling backwards, and was just now attempting to get to his feet.

Kris leaped forward, balled her hand into a fist, and sent it sailing into his face as fast and as hard as she could.

His head crashed into the wall of glass behind him. He slumped to the side, unconscious now as well, and Kris watched as the glass cracked and blood appeared on the back of his head, signaling that he might not make it back to the land of the living.

She honestly hadn't intended – actually, she hadn't intended anything specific, she'd just wanted to disarm them somehow. Apparently, it had worked.

Maybe a little too well.

She couldn't, at that point, bring herself to feel bad about that.

Lizzie gasped, prompting Kris to spin around just in time to see Reinhardt coming towards the blonde, looking panicked as he tried to punch in a code on the little device still in his hand, even while his other hand still held the pistol. Probably trying to turn my inhibitor back on, Kris thought.

He was shaking. Scared. Very scared. Security breaches of any kind didn't happen here, at least not often, that much was very obvious. And now, he had no one here to protect him. Kris glared at him with eyes already golden yellow, stalking towards him.

She wasn't at full strength anymore, but she'd just taken down two guards twice her size, and she was willing to bet the aging brown haired little man before her would be even easier to take care of.

One swipe with her clawed hand, and the control pad was sliding across the floor to rest several feet away. Reinhardt scrambled backwards, fumbling with the gun in his hand, aiming it at Lizzie.

"Liz, run!" Kris growled as she went after him.

"W-what about-" Lizzie stuttered, even as Kris could hear her scrambling off of the table she'd been on.

"Ah'll be right behind yah!" Kris reached for the pistol, managed to get her small hand around Reinhardt's wrist. He pulled the trigger reflexively, the gun still aimed in Lizzie's general direction. Kris didn't have time to look back and see if her friend was alright as she finally just lunged forward, using her entire body (for all the one hundred and thirty some pounds it was worth) to tackle him to the ground.

She dug her claws into his wrist, which she still had a grip on. He let go of the pistol. She grabbed it and got to her feet, rage and a rush of adrenaline keeping her going strong.

She aimed the pistol at his head. Reinhardt froze, eyes wide.

A part of her knew that a smart person would just get out of there. She glanced behind her. The door wasn't more than three feet away.

Reinhardt was afraid. Terrified. Of her, of the fact that he had no way of knowing what was going on at the front entrance to the compound, she didn't know for sure, but the fear gave her that same strange rush.

He'd nearly killed one of her only friends. Kris had scarcely known the meaning of the word hatred until now.

The guards were gone. There was no one left to protect the pathetic little man in front of her.

The blaring alarm, along with the flashing lights, cut out abruptly. Actually, all the lights in general cut out. Only for a moment; there were, apparently, backup power sources somewhere in the compound. Half the lights did come back on, and a few of the computers powered back up.

Reinhardt had his eyes still trained on the pistol.

"It was – it's all just business, you understand – I don't give the orders, I just follow them." He stuttered pathetically as she stalked towards him, slow and predatory.

Her blood boiled at the incredibly lame excuse, but Kris wasn't going to waste her time pointing out the flaw in that logic, the fact that he obviously enjoyed the kind of torture he put her through, put them all through. The fact that he was the 'head doctor', and that meant that he was over-seeing all sorts of horrid tests, some on children, kids no older than twelve.

She wasn't going to waste her time tearing into him with words that probably wouldn't even hurt him much, because the moment he said 'just business', something in Kris just snapped.

He was a dead man, she decided, and a fang bearing smirk spread across her lips as Wolf clawed her way to the surface.

"Oh, don't worry." She said in a low and oddly rough voice that was unfamiliar even to her own ears. "Ah ain't gonna shoot yah." She tossed the gun carelessly over her shoulder, not caring where it landed. "Wouldn't be painful enough if Ah did." Wolf went on, rather flippantly.

Reinhardt scrambled backwards until he hit a wall as she stalked towards him.

"Now lessee." She drawled instead, Southern accent turning syrupy thick, looking around the modern torture chamber they were in. "What _should _Ah do with yah. S'ppose Ah could – how did yah put it? _Fry you._"

His eyes darted towards the chair.

"Naw." She went on with a snort. "Hate to admit it, but Ah ain't that smart, and Ah got no clue how that thing works. Could maybe drown yah." She said, pausing to glance back at the water tank, then turning back to him. "But Ah'm not sure that's painful enough either." She started stalking towards him again, and he seemed to press himself against the wall, and she could hear his heart pounding away in his chest in the otherwise silent room.

She paused to hover over him for a moment, the expression on her face turning thoughtful as she made a show of bringing her hands up to inspect her claws in an almost girly manner.

"These'll cut through a lot, yah know? Just as much as that little metal knife yah used on me a few days ago, Ah'd bet."

He grew even more afraid, if that was possible, and the fanged smirk was back as she crouched down to look him in the eye.

"Now, bein skinned alive – oh, that just might be painful enough. It's an interestin way to go, anyways; maybe yah'll be remembered for somethin. Yah should thank me." Wolf brought up one clawed hand. "Ah'd brace mahself if Ah were you," she mocked, "feel free to scream for me if yah want."

And he did do plenty of screaming. It was, in an extraordinarily twisted way, music to Wolf's ears.

One of the guards came to just as she was finishing her task. He met with an end that was no less gruesome as Wolf recalled promising to tear someone's head off after waking up that first day.

She didn't know it, but her father and her uncle would be the first to lay eyes on the mess she'd made when they made it there just minutes later.

* * *

About twenty minutes had passed when Kris peered her head out of room seven cautiously, golden yellow eyes reflecting back the dim lights in the hallway (not that anyone was around to see it.)

She was just beginning to come down from the rage fueled adrenaline high she'd been riding for the past twenty minutes. Now she was just anxious to get out of there.

Maybe it hadn't really hit her yet, what she'd just done, but Wolf just couldn't bring herself to feel bad in any way.

She pushed all thoughts of the now very dead Dr. Reinhardt to the back of her mind as she stepped out into the hallway.

Too quiet, she thought.

The way Reinhardt had acted to the security breach had made it seem like it would take a small army to get in like that, so why weren't there people coming through? Was everyone still battling it out at the entrance, wherever that was?

She took a few steps down the hallway – to her left, not to her right, that was the direction she'd come from earlier, she remembered vaguely– and was shocked to see several doors swung wide open at various points along it.

She sprinted up to one, peeked cautiously into the room – a room full of cages just like the one she'd been occupying for the past few days. The cages were wide open and empty. She jogged over to the room across from it and was met with the same scene.

In fact, it was the same in all the rooms lining the hallways. Damn. How long had she been in that room with Reinhardt anyways? It wasn't that long, couldn't have been.

Whoever the intruders were, they'd apparently managed to get _something _done in the short time they'd been there – and the other kids being kept here hadn't wasted any time in getting out.

Kris was beginning to feel the exhaustion from healing Lizzie and the rather prolonged adrenaline high. She hoped she wouldn't encounter too many others while she tried to make her way through the maze of hallways. She wasn't sure she had too many other fights left in her.

The slightest of noises sounded from the room at the farthest end of the hall, and Kris growled softly. Just her luck.

She tiptoed down the hall, scarcely making a sound, heading for the room at the end. She was nearly there when the small, strange sounds reaching her ears became recognizable – it was the sound of someone sobbing.

She walked into the room cautiously and looked around, grimacing when she caught sight of the little girl hiding in a cell at the very back of the room.

Well, that was – a little unexpected.

Kris took a moment to relax herself a little, as she'd been tensed, expecting to come across another guard. Trying to stuff the Wolf back into her cage wasn't as easy as usual. She didn't have time to be worried about that, unfortunately.

She made her way across the room slowly, deliberately making a little noise as she did in the hopes that she wouldn't startle the little girl too bad.

The little girl looked up just as Kris made it to the doorway of the cell she was hiding in. A look of sheer terror spread over her tearstained face as she tried to back up but hit a wall.

Kris froze, brows furrowed, unsure of why the little girl would react this way…

And then it dawned on her.

She looked down at herself – at the blood staining her clothes, covering her hands, caked on her claws. And with her eyes…

Oh. Well, shoot. And here she was worried about having to fight of more of the monsters that had been running this place. She was no less dangerous than them, no less a monster, wasn't she? And to a girl who couldn't be more than – what, eleven? How was she to know the difference?

"Hey." Kris said quietly, voice gentle and a bit shaky. "Hey there, sweetie, it's alright." She took a single step forward. "Ah…" She heaved a shaky sigh. "Ah ain't the monster you need to be worried about." She almost added on something like 'I'm like you', but suddenly, somehow, comparing herself to this innocent, pale little girl just seemed… wrong, even though they were both mutants.

Kris got the oddest impression that somewhere (not far enough) in the back of her mind, Wolf was chuckling at her, mocking.

The girl stayed pressed up against the wall, looking skeptical, and Kris took a moment to note her appearance. She had her legs pulled tightly to her chest and was visibly shaken, but their didn't immediately appear to be a reason why she hadn't made a run for. Kris could smell her fear, so strong, a familiar smell by now, but this time it set off a different reaction in her.

_Wounded, younger, help, protect._

"Why aren't yah with the others? Why didn't yah leave?" She asked.

"My ankle," the little girl stuttered, "my ankle hurts. I can't walk on it. They just left me here."

A part of Kris thought that was a little cruel, but honestly, she couldn't blame the others for just wanting to get out.

And besides, who was she to talk about _cruel_ – but she wasn't going to think about that, nope, not now.

"Will yah let me see it? Ah'm not gonna hurt yah, Ah promise."

The girl nodded, hesitantly, sniffling.

Kris came forward and wiped her hands on her shirt (for all the very little good it did her) before gently pulling up the hem of the girls pants, and grimaced. Her ankle was swollen and discolored.

"Oh, Ah'll just bet that does hurt." She thought about trying to heal it, but instinct, oddly enough, told her not to as other sounds began to reach her ears through the deafening silence that had been surrounding them. There were men coming. They were far off yet, still wandering through the maze of hallways, but instinct told Kris that she could better protect the much younger girl before her if she held onto what strength she had left. And following her instincts sounded like a very good idea, because she currently had nothing else to work with. "What's your name, hon?"

"Kelly. Kelly Kathleen McCarthy." She replied with a bit of pride, and with her curly orange hair and freckles Kris was not surprised by the very Irish name. "What's your name?" Kelly went on to ask, seeming much less afraid than she had been, which was what Kris was hoping for.

"Victoria." And it hit her, then, that Kris (or what was left of her) had died back in that horrid room seven. "My name is Victoria." She could hear the men getting closer, and there were raised voices, and whatever was going on, she wanted no part of it. "Alright Kelly, we need to get outta here so that we can find the others. Ah'm gonna try to carry you, is that alright?"

Kelly nodded and leaned forward to wrap her arms around Victoria's neck. Victoria slipped her arms around the girl and stood, managing to settle the girl on her hip. Kelly was light as a feather. Victoria wasn't entirely sure if it was because Kelly was tiny or maybe underweight, or because she just didn't know her own strength. Maybe it was both.

Her thoughts kept splintering in too many different directions. Focus, damn it! she growled at herself.

She slipped back out of the room and paused in the hallway, unsure of which way to go.

"I think they went that way." Kelly directed her down the hall and around a corner, and Victoria peered around the corner cautiously. Seeing no one in the immediate vicinity, she hurried around the corner and began jogging down the hallway.

It wasn't long before a familiar scent reached her nose. She froze half way down the hall, and Kelly gave her the oddest look when she began sniffing like mad.

"What are you doing?" The little red head asked, confused.

Victoria ignored her as she began sniffing along the wall.

It smelled like – like trees. Trees, and fresh cut grass, the ground after it rained.

Lizzie's mutation added a very distinct, earthy smell to her scent. Victoria would know it anywhere after a few months of being her roommate, and she smelled it now.

She could almost see her friend brushing purposefully against the wall in an attempt to leave a trail for Victoria to follow out. Why else would it be all over like it was? And Lizzie was just genius like that.

"Victoria?" Kelly stuttered nervous, uncertain. Victoria (oddly) had to remind herself that sniffing along the wall like a hunting dog was not exactly normal behavior. She was freaking the poor girl out further.

"Ah'm sorry. Ah know which way to go now." Victoria responded with certainty, then tensed as she could hear others coming, getting closer. She thought, maybe, just maybe, some of those voices sounded familiar – but she wasn't sure she could afford to take the chance of finding out.

Taking a breath, she set Kelly down on the ground and then had the younger girl climb onto her back.

"Hold on real tight." She told Kelly, before taking off down the hallway as fast as she could go while following Lizzie's scent.

They got out of the building without a hitch. Victoria felt very, very stupid for thinking that would be it. Because there were guards outside. And really, where else had she expected they'd all gone? Maybe she'd just been half hoping they'd all been scared off when things got crazy.

They were just a few feet away from the gate. Such a short, short distance. But now there was a wall between them. And these guys – these guys did not have those stupid little stun guns. These guys had real, big, nasty looking – machine guns?

Shit, was all Victoria thought.

"Alright." She stuttered trying to think. "Alright. The rest of them are gone, this is pointless now, yah don't have to –" She stepped forward, but the distinct sound of weapons being primed reached her ears, and she froze. "Well, never mind." And then she was wondering if she could manage to reach even one of them before they had a chance to fire. The Wolf began clawing her way to the surface again, and it was just a few feet, and she'd be the target, maybe, just maybe, if she could get the gun from the man right in front of her, and she didn't have a clue how the guns worked, but the guy was all ready to pull the trigger, so it should be simple, turn the gun on them and pull the trigger herself, right?

"Close your eyes, ok?" She turned her head to look behind her as she murmured to Kelly. The younger girl nodded her head and did so. Victoria crouched slowly to set her down before getting back to her feet, a low growl already beginning to rumble its way up her throat.

It all happened so quick, it was a blur even to her. She did take down the guard directly in front of her, a single swipe with her claws doing the trick. None of them fired immediately, they all seemed shocked, although she wasn't sure what it was exactly that she'd done to get that reaction. Then she did have his gun, and she backed away quickly, trigger already pulled, not caring if she hit her target, just hoping they'd scatter, which a few of them did, but then they had their guns trained on Kelly (Victoria cursed again, she'd been hoping she'd be distraction enough that they'd forget the little redhead, not that she'd had a plan beyond that anyways). She froze, unsure of what to do…

And then they all dropped their weapons. She could hear them clattering to the ground one by one.

Wait, what?

She spun around to get a look at all of the men, and was confused for a few seconds more, only a few seconds. Because then a few of them began clawing at their necks, and she realized what was going on.

Tree roots. They were being choked by tree roots.

"Kris!" That was Lizzie's voice, a little ways off. "Kris, put that thing down, come on!"

She hadn't even realized she was still clutching the gun. She dropped it, suddenly feeling almost disgusted with herself, then jogged back over to Kelly, gathering the quietly sobbing little girl into her arms.

"You can open your eyes now, hon." She said when they were finally through the gates. Kelly did, sniffling and wiping at her eyes.

She paused just as they got the tree line, spotting Lizzie a few feet in, eyes white, crouched down with her hands dug into the snow, flat on the ground.

Victoria set Kelly down and tried to catch her own breath.

"You could – I mean, squeeze a little harder and–_" _She stuttered a bit, hesitant to voice her thoughts.

"I know." Lizzie murmured back, and it was comforting, in an odd way, to know she wasn't the only one. Victoria turned back towards the compound. She could see the men, still clawing at their necks, still being allowed just enough oxygen to keep going.

"Do it." Victoria said, voice quiet, but firm as she glanced at the other girl. Lizzie's eyes remained fixed on the men, her gaze intense. For a moment, Victoria thought she really was going to do it.

"I… I just can't." Lizzie's voice cracked, her shoulders slumping, and Victoria watched, strangely indifferent, as the men fell to the ground, most on all fours, obviously still alive, though gasping.

"We need to get out of here." Victoria said, turning back to Lizzie. "Preferably before they come back up shootin."

"Hey, I could've been long gone by now. We _both _could've." Lizzie replied, apparently angry now.

"Yeah, uhm, sorry. Yah didn't have to wait for me."

"Yeah, I did."

Victoria wasn't sure how to respond to that, so instead she picked Kelly back up, settling her onto her hip like she had earlier, and began jogging. She had no idea where to go, but she figured into the forest was currently their best bet, if only to get away from those relentless guards.

Lizzie fell into step alongside her and all was silent for a long while, until Victoria chanced a glance behind them and realized they weren't being followed.

"Ah don't.. hear anythin. Ah think.. we're good." She managed between gasps for breath as she finally came to a stop. She was about to set Kelly down into the snow – but she could feel the younger girl already shivering. She grimaced.

Lizzie didn't respond, her chest heaving, but she did hold up both hands towards a particularly large group of trees, her eyes filming over for the second time that day. Victoria wasn't surprised when the trees moved, but she was more than a little surprised to see what the branches had been covering up.

Several other kids, most of them about as old as Victoria and Lizzie, including Astrid and a girl who could've been her twin, except she had brown eyes instead of blue.


	11. Home Free

_**A/N: Ok, do me a favor, click back to the first chapter, and re-read that first scene, just in case you've forgotten. (Because I haven't mentioned this guy since, but I do in this chapter. Cause he's actually important. At least, he'll start to be soon.) It's a really short scene, it won't take long.**_

_**Yeah, sorry, just bear with me please... :)**_

* * *

_"Ah don't.. hear anythin. Ah think.. we're good." She managed between gasps for breath as she finally came to a stop. She was about to set Kelly down into the snow – but she could feel the younger girl already shivering. She grimaced._

_Lizzie didn't respond, her chest heaving, but she did hold up both hands towards a particularly large group of trees, her eyes filming over for the second time that day. Victoria wasn't surprised when the trees moved, but she was more than a little surprised to see what the branches had been covering up._

_Several other kids, most of them about as old as Victoria and Lizzie, including Astrid and a girl who could've been her twin, except she had brown eyes instead of blue. _They all looked rather startled upon seeing Victoria, all except for Astrid. She just offered a small smile and stood calmly, walking up to take Kelly out of Victoria's arms and bring her back into the semi-safety of the canopy created by the trees.

Victoria just stared, unsure of what to say or do.

Lizzie, abruptly, grabbed her arm and half dragged her away from the others, "explain."

"Explain." Victoria stared at her blankly, dumbly. She was exhausted and they were out in the middle of the woods and they had no clue where to go or how to get there and it was cold and snowy and her brain just wasn't working too well at that moment. "Explain what?"

"Explain… all of this!" Lizzie hissed, angry. "Explain what happened back there, the way you went at that guard… did you even realize you'd dropped down to all fours like that?"

"All fours?" Victoria's brows furrowed. All fours, like how Victor did? Really? She didn't remember. But that would explain why the guards had looked surprised.

A thought wriggled its way into her head as an uneasy feeling settled in her gut. Something wasn't quite right here somehow – the way Wolf (and it was odd enough that she seemed to be using _their _name for this thing in her head now) wouldn't go back into the fragile cage Victoria had managed to build. The way she'd almost physically felt something _snap _in that room with Reinhardt.

"Yeah, I don't even know what that was." Lizzie went on, oblivious to Victoria's conflicted feelings. "Or how about you explain what you were doing for all that extra time and why you came back –" she paused, now looking almost like she might be sick as she looked down at Victoria's clothes, "came back splattered with _blood_."

"Sorry!" Victoria snapped at this. "Ah told yah earlier, you could've gone off without me, yah know."

"Would you have left me?" Lizzie asked pointedly in response.

"Well, no, probably not..." Victoria, conceded, Wolf agreeing with her on this at least.

"Exactly." Lizzie replied matter-of-factly. "Now, stop avoiding it. What. Happened?"

Victoria's shoulder slumped as she tried to come up with something to say, some way of telling Lizzie what she'd done that would make it sound a little less horrible, but she couldn't. It was what it was. She stared down at her hands, still covered in dried blood. Then she spun around and knelt down to wash them off some in the snow, using it as an excuse not to have to look her best friend in the eye.

She didn't feel guilty, at all, but she was worried that saying it out loud, really acknowledging what had just happened, would make it real and bring those feelings on.

"He's dead." Her voice was flat, emotionless.

"Who? _Him _him?" Lizzie asked.

"Reinhardt. Yeah. And those guards, too."

"Right. I kind of figured." A pause, and Lizzie smelled nervous. "How?" She asked, quiet and more hesitant this time.

Victoria sat back on her heels and laid her hands in her lap, staring down at the pinkish patch of icy snow she'd created. She supposed she should be freezing out here in the thin cotton clothes they were all wearing, but she didn't. She didn't feel much of anything at that moment.

"Is it really that important?" She asked quietly, not sure she wanted to explain it out loud.

"Yes. I want to know." Lizzie said, firm but still quiet. Victoria didn't answer immediately. "Kris. What did you do!" Lizzie snapped.

"Ah skinned him alive!" Victoria blurted, shooting to her feet and spinning around to face the other girl in a sudden, odd burst of anger. "And Ah'm not –" she paused, realizing, "sorry. I'm not sorry at all. In fact, if Ah were you – if Ah were you Ah'd've killed the rest of those guards too, all of them!" She wasn't sure what to make of the odd certainty that came with this statement. She chose not to dwell on it.

Lizzie just stared at her, looking startled and maybe, almost, some-what afraid.

"Stop… stop starin at me like that." It sounded more pleading than demanding, the anger fading, and she was getting annoyed with her own mood swings. What was wrong with her? "Please."

"Did you really mean that?"

"…Yes."

"Oh." The blonde sounded disappointed somehow.

"They did deserve it." It actually came out half a question as Victoria hoped desperately that Lizzie would agree.

There was a pause. Victoria could feel the eyes of the others boring into her back as they murmured to each other a bit. She probably could've heard what they were saying if she bothered to pay attention, but she was deliberately tuning them out, didn't want to know.

"I'm sure they thought the same of us." Lizzie replied.

Victoria suddenly felt like she couldn't breathe. Several different emotions were turning her mind into a warzone and she couldn't think either, it was all just too much, too much happening all at once and now they were stuck out here and she didn't know what to say or do.

She closed her eyes and resisted the urge to scream as she could hear – everything, the others murmuring away behind her, sirens wailing somewhere in the distance, Lizzie's now worried voice calling her name, what sounded suspiciously like a jet taking off, cars speeding by, something padding through the snow a ways further into the woods, an owl somewhere up in the trees hooting a reminder that it was dark now and rapidly growing even colder.

The Wolf fought against the cage she'd only just managed to stuff it into on the jog away from the compound and, too exhausted to fight back, she let her out.

The effect this had wasn't the same as it had been. Instead of overpowering her, Wolf seemed to meet her in the middle, as though realizing they needed each other right then. She let out a breath as she could feel herself relaxing some as her mind cleared a bit.

She opened her eyes back up just as Lizzie was reaching out to touch her shoulder. Wolf caught her wrist reflexively. Lizzie jumped.

"Whoa, jeez. Are you ok? Look, I'm sorry, I shouldn't have – I mean, we have other things to – it's getting darker and darker and –"

A thought struck Wolf and she let go of Lizzie's arm as she shushed her.

Cars. She'd heard cars, sirens. And they weren't that far off, not really.

Cars meant a road. A road they could follow, hopefully to a town or something.

"What is it?" Lizzie asked in a hushed voice.

"Ah heard sirens… and there are cars passin by." Victoria's voice was low and a bit rougher again. Like a low growl rumbling behind everything she said, making her voice a strange double timbre. Lizzie seemed to notice and she smelled wary, but wary was better than outright afraid, so Wolf decided to leave it alone. "Probably means a road's nearby."

"A road." Lizzie's voice took on a hesitantly hopeful tone. "Cars and a road means a town somewhere along the line. We could follow it…"

"Just what Ah was thinkin."

"It's so dark now, though, I can't…"

Oh. Duh. Victoria hadn't even realized… she could see just fine, her mutation saw to that, but for the others it was far, far too dark.

"Come on." She said with a sigh, taking the blonde by the arm and leading her back towards the others and the strange canopy created by the trees.

"Staying here could be dangerous, what if They come looking for us."

"Moon ain't even out tonight. It'd be even more dangerous to wander around in the dark."

"So – what do you suggest we do?"

"Hide under the branches, like yah did with them earlier. May be warmer that way, too."

"Well come on then."

"Someone should stand watch."

"You need sleep too."

"Ah can go without it."

"You act like you've tested that out."

"Well, damn, they tried to drown me and failed. Several times. Ah think Ah can survive a while without sleep."

"Ok, you're not invincible you know –"

"Ahem."

Lizzie and Victoria turned to stare down at Astrid, who was watching them both with an annoyed expression.

"Wolf will be fine." She said calmly. "As will we. It would be best if you did come in and hide us again, though." She went on, her light blue eyes trained on Lizzie.

Lizzie gave a sigh and, begrudgingly, did as she'd just been told. Wolf sat herself against one of the branches, scanning the forest surrounding them, unable to relax any.

This was going to be a very, very long night.

* * *

"…maybe we should wait until morning…" Kitty was trying to convince Victor that going after the still missing girls would be pointless in the dark. Andi wasn't so sure she agreed. Between her father, her uncle, and herself, they'd still be able to work through the forest, easy.

Her Uncle actually seemed to be trying to keep his cool as he reminded Kitty of this.

Andi wasn't really paying much attention to the whole exchange, though, as she had her eyes fixed on Ororo. The Weather Witch had walked off away from the group a bit and was looking towards the sky as her eyes filmed over. A few moments passed, and then Andi could feel the air around them growing warmer. Not by a whole lot, but enough that it might just be bearable for her cousin and whoever she was lost in the forest with.

Hank McCoy ambled up behind Ororo and she turned with a small smile, speaking to him softly. Andi looked away at this point and wondered whether anyone else knew about them yet. They'd be married by the time Andi and her brother were old enough to even vaguely know what marriage was, but that could still be a year or two from the technical present for all Andi knew.

It was all a little unsettling to think about.

_It is odd, isn't it. _Jimmy came up next to her, speaking telepathically so what was said wouldn't reach the three other sets of over sensitive ears. They were so used to communicating with each other this way that Andi barely thought twice about it.

_You have no idea. It's hard enough just trying to remember to call 'Ro 'Professor Munroe'. _Andi grimaced.

_How about 'Dr. McCoy'? Hank will have a field day with that, if we all remember this. Maybe that's why he looked a little amused by something the day we left. _A pause, and she got a brief flash of wariness from him, meaning he was worried to ask something. She waited silently. _Do you miss her? Our Ororo, I mean._

_Yeah. Not as much as Junior, but... _She glanced back at Ororo and Hank, her hand reaching impulsively for a small chain she always wore around her neck, pulling it out from beneath her t-shirt and jacket, playing with the small diamond ring hanging from it. _I hope they both survive now. It'd be… nice. _Nice. Nice didn't even begin to cover how wonderful, amazing, it would be if things actually worked out.

_Nice? _He asked, raising an eyebrow at her. _For being a woman, you are terrible with words._

"Shut up." She growled aloud, punching his arm.

"Hey! That hurt." Jimmy brought his other hand up to rub it dramatically.

"Pansy." She replied, teasing. "I didn't hit you that hard."

He didn't get a chance to answer.

"Hey, kid, we could use your help."

She quirked an eyebrow at being called a 'kid' – even her dad had stopped calling her 'kid' eventually. No one else knew that at the moment, though. She said nothing as she exchanged a look with her brother, shoved her hands in her pockets, and headed towards her Uncle.

* * *

In the farthest, darkest corner of the compound, two figures dressed in all black emerged from a small building that had easily gone unnoticed by everyone else in the earlier chaos. The first, a tall and beefy man with long hair pulled back into a ponytail, went ahead and looked around a bit, grimacing when he realized that even his Bosses other heavies were long gone.

His companion, a petite woman with pale skin and dark red hair, joined him.

"Well, looks like we're on our own up here. No surprise there."

"The Boss won't be happy." The man replied gruffly.

"He's already unhappy." The redhead rolled her eyes. "He was unhappy the moment he saw that the wolf girl got away. He'll probably tell us to go look for her, she can't have gone far."

"I wonder what's so damn special about her anyways."

The redhead only shrugged.

"She is special, Andrei," a deep baritone called out with the hint of a southern drawl, causing both the man and the red head to turn stiffly and come to attention, "because those with her mutation are few and far between. Of those few, a mere handful can claim to truly be as strong as she is, now think on that a minute, put the pieces together, and try not to ask any other stupid questions." His tone was snappish, but Andrei knew his Bosses anger wasn't directed at him, not fully. He nodded stiffly and wisely left his response at that. "Miss Connolly, I suggest you call for someone to get us out of here before the police begin searching this place."

"Yes, sir." The redhead replied crisply, and took out a cellphone, praying she'd get reception. They were out in the middle of nowhere, after all. She wandered off a little before pressing a few buttons on the touchscreen.

"Sir, do you want us to bring a team in to search the woods?" Andrei asked, keeping his tone even, although his own tension showed through in the way his accent thickened a bit – which is to say it actually became vaguely noticeable.

His Boss took a moment, letting out a breath.

"No, no. They won't know what she's capable off, and she's got others with her. I've got something else in mind."

"Sir?" Connolly called out from her position a ways away. "They're bringing a chopper in now, but it'll be a while."

"We can't stay here. Tell them to meet us at the hospital in town, I know the woman in charge there."

* * *

A twig snapped, and Victoria nearly jumped out of her skin at how close it was. Shouldn't she have heard anything before it got that close? Well. Maybe not. The snow seemed to dampen any noise some, and she really wasn't that well attuned to her own senses yet. She made a mental note to focus on that with Victor next time… well, if they made it out of here.

No, when. They _would _get out of here.

Standing slowly, she crept along a short ways further into the woods, towards the noise she'd heard earlier. It had come from the opposite direction of the compound, she was sure of that, so it had to just be an animal, right? Wolf let out a low and threatening growl, deciding to go with that idea as she moved through the snow as quietly as she could. A twig snapped again. Even closer. She froze and closed her eyes and for a moment and just listened.

Something was definitely shuffling through the snow. And it was an animal. She could hear it on four legs. She let out another growl as she opened her eyes just in time to see...

A dog. A fluffy, grey dog. Or, maybe a wolf? It sort of looked like a wolf, a small-ish one. She tensed, didn't move, unsure of what it would do.

It tilted its head at her in an almost curious way, and she found herself, inadvertently, staring straight into its eyes.

Eyes, she knew, matched the color hers had currently taken on. It crouched down into the snow a bit and let out a short bark before jumping back up, suddenly energetic, and turning to begin heading back the way it had come. She stared after it for a moment and tried to process the very distinct impression that the dog – wolf – whatever it was had just told her to follow him. (And it was a him, though she wasn't entirely sure what told her that either.)

As if he could read her thoughts, the wolf-dog stopped and turned halfway back to her, letting out another little bark. _Come on, then_. He was telling her. He then took off again, this time at a fast run.

Well. If the men who'd taken them were planning to hunt them down, it was likely they'd have done so already and Victoria would have heard something going on. Since she hadn't, she decided she had nothing to lose.

She took off after the strange little wolf-dog. And if she noticed the way she had unconsciously dropped down to all fours as she tried to keep up with him – well, at least no one was watching this time.

…

She had no idea how far the wolf-dog took her, but it felt like they ran forever.

It felt good, the running.

She was beginning to wonder just how long she could keep going like she was when the dog stopped ahead of her, skidding to a halt in the snow. Wolf stopped as well and transitioned a little awkwardly back to being on all fours again, approaching the clearing with caution.

It was a cabin. The dog had led her to somebodies house.

"Doesn't look like anybody's home." She muttered to herself. And if anyone was home, they were undoubtedly asleep. She turned to look down at the furry grey animal next to her. "What'd yah lead me all the way here for?"

The dog let out a little whine of sorts before it turned to begin trotting towards the house. She watched it go with a raised eyebrow, but didn't go any further herself, a little wary and more than a little surprised that the dog seemed to not only thoroughly understand her, but was answering her, too. Or at least, attempting too, in his wolf-dog…ish…way.

The dog stopped in front of what she assumed was the cabins back door, turned back to face her, sat himself down, and tilted his head expectantly. She hesitated. The dog let out a bark.

"Oh, fine, fine." She huffed as she stomped forward. "If some guy comes out with a shotgun and shoots me or somethin, yah'll are dead, yah stupid mutt."

The dog growled and let out an offended bark. She made it to the porch, froze, took in a deep breath.

Oh. _Oh_. She didn't know her aunt and uncle had a dog. They really _were _in Canada then.

Lovely.

She knocked on the door a few times. She got no response. She was right. No one was home.

"Well." She looked down at the dog again. "Now what?"

If she didn't know any better, she'd say the crazy animal looked amused by her. She glared at it, then felt rather silly for it. The dog paid her no mind, dipping its head down to sniff at the wooden deck beneath them. After a moment it stopped, then began pawing at one board in specific, looking up at her with another little whine.

"Ok." She drew the word out, still feeling silly, because what was she doing here anyways? The dog continued to paw at the board. She crouched down and inspected it for lack of anything better to do.

There was a small hole in the wood. It looked natural. She never would have glanced twice at it. But the way the dog was pawing at it…

She pulled up on it with two fingers. It came up, to her surprise. There was a small compartment underneath. She felt around inside it and ended up pulling out a small key.

Well. There you go.

She held up the key, looked up and just stared at the wolf-dog, unable to get over the weirdness of it all. How did it know… How _could _it…

She heaved a sigh. Maybe it was best not to ask questions. She reached out to scratch the dog between the ears - he responded by giving her hand an affectionate lick – and stood up to head into the house. Maybe, if she had any luck at all, aunt Marie hadn't taken her cellphone with when they'd left.

Now, if only she could remember the phone number of someone helpful…

* * *

They were trying to get the second batch of kids into the jet when the distinct, synthetic ring of a cellphone was heard, coming right from Ororo's pocket. It was three in the morning. Who would call her at three in the morning? She was no less confused when she took her phone out of her pocket only to see that it said _Rogue. _Because Marie was standing just a few feet from her, directing the frightened kids into the jet.

So the fact that she was getting a call from Marie's phone was – odd, to say the least. But then, maybe that's why she answered it anyways.

"Hello?" She asked, a little hesitant.

"Ms. Munroe!" A familiar voice exclaimed.

"Kris?" Ororo's eyes widened. "What – where are you? They've just gone looking for you! Where did you get a phone?" The questions spilled out without her entirely meaning for them too. It was just – good to hear her voice, to know she was alright. They'd _all_ been worried after all.

"Ah ain't sure where Ah am. Ah mean, there was this – well, never mind all that," she said, sounding a little frantic, "you said they're looking for me? Who's they? Where are they? Ah'm fine, but the others…"

"There are others?" Ororo said, now feeling hopeful.

"Yeah, yeah, bout eight or nine others, Lizzies with them, but it's freezin and they're hidin out under those trees, yah won't even know they're there…"

"Victor and Logan and this other woman, Andi, she's a feral too, they're all out looking for them, don't worry about that. They'll notice them somehow."

There was a long pause after this.

"Really?" Kris asked. "Victor too?"

"Yes, really. Where are you?" Ororo asked again.

"Ah think, maybe… well, Ah don't know, but this cabin… do you know if Aunt Marie and Uncle Logan have a dog? Crazy little mutt, looks a bit like a small wolf."

"A… small _wolf_?"

...

"Ms. Munroe!"

Ororo smiled in relief at the lanky blonde who threw long arms around her neck.

"Lizzie! Oh, I was starting to worry you hadn't... well. Did they hurt you, are you…"

"I'm ok, Ms. Munroe."

Ororo wasn't convinced, particularly not with the way Lizzie and the eight others that had been with her were shivering like they were. "Come on, let's get you out of the cold –" She began leading her towards the jet.

"Wait! Please! Miss!" Another voice called out urgently, and Lizzie turned first, recognizing the voice.

"Astrid? What's wrong?" She pulled away from Ororo and ran to the other girl.

"It's Victoria, he's going to get her!"

"What? Who is? Where is she?"

Astrid shook her head and brushed past Lizzie on her way to Ororo.

"Please, you have to go get Victoria?"

"Victoria?" The Weather Witch asked uncertainly.

"Kris." Lizzie clarified. "She means Kris."

"But we know where Kris is, she's safe for now."

"No, no, she's not! Please believe me!"

"How do you know?"

"I can see – I just do. Please. _Please._" Astrid's gaze was intense in a way that Ororo couldn't ignore.

"Alright. Come on, into the jet, quickly."

* * *

She should be safe here. Ororo had confirmed that yes, the little wolf-dog (his name was Fang apparently, and he was still hovering close by) had led her to her aunt and uncles cabin. Few people knew where it was. She was fine. She was safe. Really, she was.

Her instincts told her otherwise. She could've sworn she heard someone creeping around in the trees outside and she just couldn't bring herself to believe it was nothing. The fact that Fang was growling randomly at what seemed to be nothing in particular only made it worse. Something was very, very wrong with this picture.

She stepped out into the snow in the cabins front yard, with Fang hot on her heels, and allowed Wolf to take over yet again as she scanned the trees surrounding her. There was nothing. All was silent again.

_CRASH_

Until the sound of a glass being shattered rang out. Wolf let out a vicious growl as she tore back through the cabin's front door.

"Come on!" She barked at the shadows when she saw no one. "Stupid coward! Face me already, let's get this the hell over with!" There was no answer. However, a board creaked somewhere closer to the kitchen. Victoria moved in that direction as quietly as she could.

She pressed herself against the wall just next to the doorway, waited as patiently as she could, and was rewarded with the sound of another board creaking.

Victoria pushed off the wall and spun around through the door, lashing out with her claws. Her attacker – a woman, judging by the long wisp of red hair peeking out from beneath her hood and the way she moved – lashed out with a sword of some kind. Victoria tried to grab her wrist, but this woman was fast, spun out of the way and twirled her sword with a speed and precision that Victoria had only ever seen in movies. Before she knew what had hit her, there was a cut on both cheeks and one across her forearm, and she was too stunned to move before a heavy black boot connected with her stomach and sent her sailing back a few feet and – right into the glass from the window she'd heard being shattered minutes earlier. Several sizable shards embedded themselves into her arms. She ignored the pain, tried to scramble to her feet, just barely managed to roll out of the way as the redhead's sword came down hard and very nearly sliced straight through Victoria's neck.

It got stuck in the wooden floor beneath them instead. This gave the woman pause as she had to work a bit to get it out. Wolf, having had enough, lunged forward and grabbed the woman's wrist and twisted as hard as she could. The woman cried out, and Wolf gave a satisfied, fang bearing smile at the knowledge that she'd either broken or dislocated something. Not wasting any time, she proceeded to pounce on the woman with a snarl, landing on top of the redhead as she was thrown onto her back.

With the redheads arms now pinned firmly to the ground – and she really _had _dislocated something, there was definitely something off about that shoulder – Wolf took a moment to breath. There were pieces of glass in her arms still, they weren't healing like they should, and she was starting to feel a little dizzy. Wolf stared down at the redhead and for a very real moment actually contemplated slashing through the woman's neck with her claws and being done with the whole thing.

The familiar sounds of a jets engine had Victoria forcibly reasserting some control, though. Beyond relieved by the sound – because that meant it was over now, she really, truly was completely and totally home free – she sprang to her feet and forgot the woman entirely as she sprinted out the door.

"Dad." She breathed, upon seeing Victor running towards her. She was breathing hard and her legs felt like jelly and her arms hurt, but she'd never been happier than she was in that moment, seeing him coming towards her and knowing that it was over, over, _over_.

"Kid!" He said and she tried to keep moving towards him, but something was wrong, her legs weren't working so well anymore and her arms still hurt. They weren't healing. None of her cuts were healing. Why weren't they healing? "Kid!" He said again. "Kris! Shit." She could hear him swearing. Could feel his arms around her, catching her as she collapsed. Could feel him shaking her, saying her name again and again…

And then, nothing.

* * *

_**Yeah. So. Sorry this took a while. My creativity level has been at about zero here lately. **_

_**Reviews are always appreciated. :)**_


	12. Not Alright

Her dreams were nonsensical, disjointed affairs that made no real sense and were rather frightening. She kept seeing Reinhardt's face – wide eyed and terrified as she stalked towards him – and the cold eyes of that redhead. And then there was the tank. The big blue water tank that had somehow been worse than the chair.

The one that woke her up was the one that was, unfortunately, the most realistic – for a moment she was thoroughly convinced she really had woken up strapped down to that cold, hard table again, surrounded by metal and bright lights. Perhaps that's why waking up for real in the med room in the basement of the mansion didn't sit very well with her. Because at first she was blinded by the lights above her, and it smelled sterile like the lab rooms had at the compound. She couldn't help her reaction – the idea that getting out of there might have been the dream was too much, and Victoria instantly retreated, allowing Wolf to take over protectively.

Her memory got a little fuzzy after that. Apparently she attacked Dr. McCoy, and her Uncle when they got too close. Victor, she would later be told, was the only one allowed to get close enough to touch her. Besides that, though, that day was apparently pretty uneventful. They cleared out the kitchen upstairs, Victor took Wolf up and she ate enough food to feed half a football team before he took her back down to the med lab where she slept for several hours more.

Then it was back to dreaming, but she didn't dream of the labs this time, or Reinhardt. In fact, when she woke again, she couldn't remember her dreams, knew only that they weren't unpleasant. Over twenty for hours after she had first passed out, she opened her eyes to find her mother sitting next to the bed she was on, her father hovering close by.

"Mama?" Any reaction she would have had to still being in the med lab was quelled by the sight of the older woman.

"Yes, honey." Carolyn nodded, tears streaming down her face as she smiled and reached out a hand to take Victoria's.

Victoria stared at her, a little bewildered for a moment. And then, because she was just that happy to see her Mama, she dove off the table and threw her arms around the older woman, tears sliding down her own cheeks. "Mama." She choked out before she started sobbing, unable to stop herself.

Her mother stroked her hair soothingly, murmuring into her ear. "It's alright dear. It's over now. Everythin's just fine." Even as she was crying too, probably more from happiness.

Everything was not alright, but she didn't have the heart to explain that to her mother. Instead, she only sobbed harder.

…

Everyone steered clear of her when she finally felt up to venturing out of the med lab a few hours later. That suited her just fine. Besides her parents, there were only two people in the mansion she really wanted to see anyways. She wound up in the kitchen again, prompted by her growling stomach, before her father handed her off a bag her mother had packed and brought for her. Inside were some comfy clothes and the supplies to braid her hair like she usually did.

A nice hot shower came next. That felt sinful good. Stepping out of the shower, she paused long enough to wipe off the steamy mirror and just stare at herself. What she saw sent her stomach twisting itself into disgusted knots. She looked no different. There were no scars, no bruises, nothing. She still looked like just Kris. Her healing had taken care of it all so perfectly. Too perfectly. The implications of that weighed on her all at once as she stood there staring into that mirror, and she wasn't sure she liked what those implications were. She would, maybe, have to talk all that out with someone. Probably her father. Eventually. She had no desire to do so now. She was afraid she'd end up crying again. She hated crying.

She pulled Wolf halfway to the surface and reveled in the feeling of _rightness_ that came with it as her eyes turned golden-yellow and she bit her lower lip lightly just to see her fangs poking out a bit. She liked herself better this way. Heaving a sigh, she shoved on the blue jeans and tank top her mother had gotten her, and was startled by the reminder that it was actually summertime. They weren't way up in Canada anymore. It was hot outside.

Her mind settled back on the two people she wanted to see.

Victoria threw her hair into a quick braid and stared into the mirror again. Feeling like a hot mess, she decided on which of the two people she wanted to see first, set her face into a purposeful scowl that would hopefully keep everyone else steering clear, and headed out.

…

She ended up following Lizzie's scent through the mansion and outside, although she wasn't surprised to find her friend in the garden.

"Knew Ah'd find yah out here." She murmured as she came up and sat herself down on the ground next to the other girl.

"Hey!" Lizzie looked to her, brown eyes lighting up. "Welcome back."

"You seem surprised."

"Dr. McCoy said it could be days before you – well, came back." Lizzie's brows furrowed a bit. "Although, with those eyes… is that, like, permanent now for some reason?"

"Maybe." Victoria answered, but didn't elaborate, and Lizzie didn't ask her to. Victoria looked her over.

"You look – healthy." Her brows furrowed. Almost too healthy. Sure, Victoria had healed her, but sprinting through the woods, being out in the cold with such thin clothing, jostling her way out of the compound in the first place… Victoria somehow expected Lizzie to be sporting some bruises or something but she wasn't.

Lizzie's expression turned serious.

"Hey, about that. What happened, in that room, with Reinhardt? Before, I mean, when I was still unconscious."

Victoria paused, taken a little off guard. "Ah healed yah. He said he'd given yah some sort of poison and Ah don't know, yah were…" Flashes of the blonde, laid out limp and deathly pale on the metal table, assaulted her mind. "… well, does it matter?" She finished off.

"Whatever you did, it – I don't know. Maybe I imagined it. I didn't tell anyone else. It's probably nothing." Lizzie rubbed her arm, seeming truly unsettled.

"Bullshit. Tell anyone else what, Liz?" Victoria prodded.

"You were trying to get that gun away from him. I didn't see. I was already heading for the door. But I heard the gun go off, I swear I did, and then my shoulder… It felt like it did the time you healed my ankle. Pain, so much pain, then this weird sort of tingling. When I had a chance to look down, there was a little bit of blood, but no wound."

Victoria stared at her blankly. "Ok. So. Maybe whatever Ah did… maybe it takes a minute for your body to slow back down. Maybe it lasts for a bit."

"Well, however it works," Lizzie murmured, looking away almost shyly, "I think you saved my life two times over."

Victoria rubbed the back of her neck. "Well. You kinda saved mine, too. So."

Lizzie looked back towards her. Golden eyes met brown for a moment, Victoria bumped shoulders with Lizzie, and nothing else needed to be said.

"Do yah know how many of the others got out?"

"All but two, assuming we were right in thinking there were eighty of us all together."

"That's good at least."

"Yeah." Lizzie let out a sigh as she pulled her knees to her chest, resting her chin on them. "I'm just glad it's over now."

Victoria didn't reply immediately. Lizzie shifted to look at her.

"Penny."

"Huh?"

"Penny for your thoughts. You look like something's wrong."

"It's nothin." Victoria tried to brush it off.

Lizzie eyed her for a moment longer, and then startled her by murmuring, "bullshit."

"Hey! Since when do you got a mouth on yah?" Victoria chuckled, vaguely amused.

"Since you're a bad influence, but we already knew that." Lizzie teased back, but got serious again all too quickly. "Come on, tell me."

"It ain't over."

"You sound pretty sure of that. Ms. Munroe said –"

"Ah know." Victoria grunted. "Bet she told me the same thing when she talked to me a couple hours ago. Maybe she really believes it's all over. Ah think she's probably tryin to – Ah don't know, protect us or somethin. Little late for that don't yah think?" Victoria snorted and stood up to begin pacing.

"Hey, it's not her fault we were taken." Lizzie scolded.

"Ah know. Didn't mean that the way it came out."

Lizzie's expression turned bemused. "So, wait, you think what, that there's more going on?"

"Yeah. Ah mean, come on Liz. We're not kids anymore. Ah'm not stupid, and Ah know you ain't either. Ah bet this kinda stuff happens to people like us all over, more often than anyone'll probably admit. Whatever's goin on here, it's bigger than that hellhole we were in." She paused, stopping to stand in front of Lizzie. "Did anyone tell yah what happened at the cabin?"

"They said you were obviously attacked."

"Yeah, by some redhead with this sword. Only hours after we all escaped. How much you wanna bet whoever was really runnin that place sent her to follow me, to come get me? To come get _us _if she could?"

Lizzie looked down, mulling this over. "If that's true, then that means they probably have more places like the one we were in."

"Exactly." Victoria said. "It ain't over."

"Guess work." Lizzie shook her head.

Victoria sighed and starting pacing again. Lizzie took to staring at the ground and all was silent for a moment.

"My dad – Victor – he told me, just before Ah left to come here the day we were taken. He said he knew who my stepfather was." Victoria stopped again and pointed at Lizzie. "He was the one givin orders to the people who took my mother all those months ago. Dad said there was somethin bigger goin on, much bigger than what he'd first thought."

"Ok." Lizzie drew the word out. "That's a pretty big leap, connecting those dots. We can't even begin to know if what you're implying is true."

"Ah bet my dad will find out if it is. Ah just hope he'll let me help."

"Why do I get the feeling you want it all to be connected?" Lizzie asked.

Victoria shook her head. "Ah'm goin to talk to my Dad."

"Wait…" Lizzie stopped her, shooting to her feet. She didn't go on, though, and she smelled nervous and worried.

"What?" Victoria asked, crossing her arms and raising an eyebrow.

"Nothing." Lizzie stuttered a bit. "Never mind. I just think, you know, maybe, with everything that's happened, you should – take it easy, for a while."

Victoria eyed her for a moment, but didn't reply as she turned on her heel and headed back for the mansion. She could feel Lizzie's eyes on her back as she went and felt bad for worrying her friend, but the idea of taking it easy, of sitting still… she wasn't sure she could. Not when all of it really could be connected. Not when it was very, very possible she knew who was behind it all.

She really did want to talk to Victor. She had a feeling about all of this, and if anyone would be willing to listen to her, she knew it would be him. Besides, she wanted to go home and see her boyfriend (he wasn't at the very top of her list of important things maybe, and for that she felt a little bad, but he _was_ on it) and sleep in her own bed. Or maybe sleep in _his _bed, Wolf whispered in the back of her mind, and she wondered if his parents were back from… whatever it is they'd been doing. He'd said he wasn't entirely sure how long they'd be gone, but it had been a good week.

After spending that night out in the woods, she also wanted to get back to training with her Dad. Actually, remembering how her uncle's dog had snuck up on her, maybe _that _should be at the top of her list.

She was so lost in thought as she made her into the mansion that she growled out loud in annoyance when a small red something ran right into her.

"I'm sorry!" A vaguely familiar voice stuttered, the girl keeping her head down, frightened. She was on crutches, her ankle in a cast. "I'm so sorry, I was just – and my stupid ankle's – I'll just get out of your –"

"Hey, wait." Victoria caught the redhead gently by the arm. The girl looked up slowly, and big green eyes went wide in recognition. Victoria gave her a small smile. This was the other person she'd wanted to see. "Yah look a little lost." She went on. "Need some help, hon?"

Kelly nodded shyly. "I was trying to find Ms. Munroe, but this place is kind of big."

"She's probably in her office, come on." Victoria started leading the redhead down the hallway. "Yahr ankle, did yah break somethin?"

"Yes." The girl nodded. "It stinks, having to use these crutches."

"Well, the cast looks kinda cool." It was purple. Victoria had actually never seen a purple one before. Kelly didn't answer immediately. "This is it." Victoria spoke again when they made it to the Weather Witches office. The redhead turned to face her, biting her lip as she looked up at Victoria. Victoria was curious now, but waited patiently.

"I know what she's going to tell me. She's going to tell me she's found my parents, and that they didn't want me, but that it'll be ok. That's what everyone keeps telling me, that everything will be ok." Kelly sounded frustrated now. Victoria let out a sigh.

"Yeah, I noticed people tend to do that whenever they've got no clue what else to say."

"Are they right?"

Victoria thought on that for a moment. "Ah don't think they're lyin. Maybe everythin will be ok, eventually." She could hear her mother in her head, telling her everything was fine now even as Victoria bawled into her shirt. She didn't even know this little girl in front of her, but she understood in that moment exactly how the redhead felt. "Just try to remember they mean well. This whole mansions full of people just like yah, yah know." It was all she could think to say.

Kelly nodded, then cast her eyes towards the floor, suddenly shy again. "Will you come in with me?"

Victoria hesitated to say yes. Now that she knew Kelly was alright, she wanted to go find her parents and hopefully just go home.

"Please." Kelly looked back up to her with big green eyes.

Victoria's shoulders slumped and she almost muttered a curse under her breath (but then she remembered the girl before her was only eleven and seemed a little attached to her. How'd that happen again?). Wolf's laughter echoed through her head. "Alright, alright, just… stop with the eyes, you're meltin me like butter." She teased.

The girl giggled a bit as Victoria opened the door and ushered her into to the large room.

She didn't pay a whole lot of attention to whatever Ororo told the redhead, figuring it was none of her business. Besides that, she was too preoccupied with – everything.

"…for now why don't you go see Ms. Kitty," she tuned into the conversation when it became obvious that Ororo was dismissing the girl, "you remember where her room is, right?"

"I think so." Kelly replied. "Thank you, Ms. Munroe." She began making her way out but paused at the door to look up at Victoria. "Will you – I mean," she stuttered shyly, "do you live here too? Will I see you?"

Victoria opened her mouth, but looking down at those big green eyes, she suddenly felt a little bad for having to say no, she wouldn't.

"She doesn't live here anymore, but she knows she's more than welcome to visit anytime she likes." Ororo came up next to Victoria and nudged her arm gently. "You will come see us now, won't you?"

Victoria bit her lip lightly, wincing when she remembered her fangs, but Kelly didn't seem to notice them. "Ah'm goin home today, but… Ah don't live that far. Yeah. Sure. Ah'll... be around."

The way the redhead's eyes lit up immediately made it worth promising. "Ok. Right, well, bye then!"

Ororo closed the door before Victoria could make her own escape.

"I hope you didn't just say that to make her happy."

"No ma'am, of course not. Ah just hadn't even thought that far ahead. But Ah'll have to come back to see Lizzie." Victoria frowned, thinking. "Uhm, Professor Munroe?"

"Yes?"

"Am Ah missin somethin here? Because beyond gettin her outta there – Ah mean, she seemed kinda terrified of me." Not that Victoria blamed the girl for that.

"You saved her life. She just wanted to help you in return." Victoria just stared at her, confused, and Ororo looked amused. "No one told you?"

"Told me what?" Victoria asked, now a little worried.

"Come and sit down. I'll have to explain her mutation to you first."

"Oh boy." Victoria muttered as she warily sat in one of the familiar chairs in front of the Weather Witches desk. Ororo leaned on the desk in front of her, and Victoria felt sixteen again, remembering the first time she'd gotten into a fight here. "Alright. What'd no one bother to tell me?"

"Kelly's mutation somehow combines telepathy and empathy. A little dangerous actually; according to Hank, she can manipulate people into thinking and feeling certain things. Now, she's a very sweet girl, I highly doubt she'd use this in a negative way on her own. She said the people at the compound were," Ororo paused grimacing, "well, torturing her into attempting to use this to their advantage. If you hadn't saved her, she would have either been killed, or they'd have forced her to work for them somehow. With a mutation like that…"

With a mutation like that, that second option could've been very bad for a lot of people. Well, shoot. And Victoria hadn't even known.

"Just some food for thought." Ororo said before going on. "As bad as it sounds at first, she can use it in a positive way as well. She spent an hour and a half down in the med-lab with you while you were still asleep the second time. She explained to us when she finally allowed herself to be led out that she'd been helping you keep calm, helping your mind to sort itself back out. If she hadn't, Wolf might not have –"

"Ah would've stayed full feral."

"Yes. For how long, we can't even begin to know."

Victoria thought about it a minute, thought about not even remembering her dreams. "She… was in my head." She wasn't angry, in fact she was kind of grateful, but the idea was…

"If you were wondering why she seems a little attached to you, I think that might be why."

Victoria couldn't help it; she laughed out loud. Ororo looked startled and a little confused at the sudden outburst.

"Sorry." Victoria said. "It's just – that's crazy. Ah'd've thought she'd be runnin for the hills after a glimpse into my head."

"Ah, I see. Well, it seems to have had the opposite effect. She likes you. Which is why I hope you will come back and visit. If you don't actually plan too, you should go tell her that. Don't let her get her hopes up for no reason."

"Ah wouldn't do that, honest. Uhm, speaking of that, can Ah leave now? Ah was kind of fixin to head home with my parents –" She stopped mid-sentence as something Ororo had said belatedly caught her attention. "You called me – it – Wolf."

"I did, didn't I? I'm sorry. You all had name tags, yours said Wolf and Victoria I believe. When you went feral for those few hours it didn't quite feel right to call you Kris somehow. Those name tags alone were a heap of trouble. They were tracking devises. We had to have poor Tony go through and deactivate every one before we could land here. Your father has yours, although I can't begin to imagine why you'd want to keep it."

"It's alright, it's just – Ah've been callin her – it – Wolf. In my own head. Ah was wonderin how anyone else would know. Ah'd forgot about the tags."

"That's understandable. Of course you can leave. I hope you'll sleep a little more peacefully in your own bed tonight."

"Thank you." Victoria stood to leave and lightly bit her lip again as she debated on asking one last question. "Uhm, just one more thing. Did Kelly tell you – do yah know if she saw anythin specific when she was tryin to help me? Like somethin just before Ah found her?"

"Not that I can recall."

"Oh, yah'd recall this." Victoria muttered, taking a breath and trying to relax a bit in the knowledge that if Kelly had seen _that_, it was likely the redhead really would've run for the hills. Since she hadn't, she figured it was safe to assume no one but Lizzie knew. "Thanks Ms. Munroe." She smiled at the older woman before slipping out of the office.

She paused just outside the door. Wasn't that almost exactly how her conversation with the Weather Witch had ended just one week earlier, before all the craziness? Shaking her head at the strange sense of déjà vu, she walked off down the hallway to find her mother. She just wanted to go home.

* * *

_**Ok, I know this chapter's all about Victoria, I'm just trying to make sure I cover all the loose ends and stuff. There's about two chapters left for this story, and then I'm thinking another sequel is in order, I seem to be full of ideas here. **_

_**Review please. :)**_


	13. Changes

This was – unexpected.

"Andi?" Jim's brows furrowed. They were home – that is, in their parents cabin. A fire was blazing in the fire place. They were sitting just in front of it, playing cards. Andi had paused at this, a beer – the same kind their dad drank, he noted – in her hand, half way raised as though she were going to drink it. "We're home."

She snorted, giving him a weird look. "Yeah, yeah we are. Very good Jimmy." Her tone was dripping with sarcasm. He was too bewildered to be annoyed by it. She continued to take a sip from the bottle in her hand.

"But – how?"

"How what?"

"How did we get here?" He exclaimed. "For that matter, why are we _here_?"

"Well," she drew the word out, tone still sarcastic, although worry shown through in her expression, "this is kind of our cabin."

"Kind of our – kind of?"

"Ok, this isn't funny." She scowled at him, setting her bottle back down and eyeing him. "What the hell's wrong with you?"

He didn't answer immediately, instead opting to feel through her mind a bit through their link. She quirked a brow at him, but didn't stop him from doing so.

What he found made his stomach drop.

He had, really, assumed that he and Andi would remember it all. Remember going back to change things and why they had to. Either that or neither of them would remember and life would go on the way it was meant to. He had not at all expected to just pop back to their own time, remember it all as clearly as if it had still happened – and apparently be the only one. Clearly, though, he was.

"Jimmy." Andi said, her voice a little more gentle now. "What's wrong?"

"I don't… you don't remember."

"Remember what?"

He shook his head. "It's not important." He closed his eyes as he tried to figure why his head was pounding now. "You said this is kind of our cabin, what did you mean?"

"Well, we don't exactly live here anymore, do we? We only ever come here for our birthday."

Birthday. If it was their birthday then they'd been brought back to just a few days before they left.

"But – where's Mama? Where's dad?"

She gave him a hard stare. "You really don't remember?"

"Remember what?"

"Maybe I should be the one to have a look in your head this time –"

"No, please, just bear with me. Where are our parents?"

"Gone. They've been gone since we were sixteen. Jimmy..I don't understand, you were fine just a few minutes ago, how can you not remember?"

"Gone. But that's not – we were supposed to fix it! Oh, God…" He was panicking. He couldn't help it. This wasn't right.

"Hey." Andi murmured. "Hey, just calm down, it's alright. Breathe."

"I can't…" He closed his eyes, trying to think, but his head was still pounding, and he couldn't tell what was going on. "I need to think for a minute."

"Ok. Alright. Uh, how about I make you some of that tea you love so much? Just – breathe, alright." He could feel her eyeing him worriedly before she got up and padded towards the kitchen. He sucked in a breath, let it out slow, opened his eyes and turned to watch his sister move around in the kitchen.

Ok, so this whole scene was off in a lot of ways that had nothing to do with their parents. For one, Andi didn't drink. With their mother being so – off most of the time, Andi hadn't wanted anything to do with alcohol. Change number two, number one having been their parents apparently being nowhere to be found. Change number three…

"You're engaged." He said out loud, noting the small and simple, but pretty diamond on her left hand. The same one he was used to her hiding beneath her shirt on a chain. She glanced down at it.

"Yeah. To Junior. Remember?"

So Hank and Ororo's son was alive and well, then.

"Sort of." He muttered. She pretended she hadn't heard it, leaving them in silence for a moment as she poured hot water into a mug.

It startled him, the old rock music seeming to come from nowhere, blasting into the room. It didn't help that he was already feeling panicked. He jumped, knocking over the glass bottle next to him. Andi's beer spilled out over the rug beneath him. He cursed, not something he did often, and Andi quirked a brow at him.

"Jumpy much? It's probably Lorie and Will. Knew they'd call eventually."

Lorie and Will? His brows furrowed, but Andi was already crossing the room to the clear glass screen on the wall just above the fireplace. She pressed the single lit button at the bottom of it and suddenly the whole screen lit up. Two smiling faces appeared on it – a young man and woman, both only about as old as Andi was in appearance.

"Happy Birthday to you…" They sang in unison, breaking off into laughter.

Andi rolled her eyes at the screen, looking both amused and exasperated. "Shouldn't at least one of you be studying or something? Thought you had finals this week?"

"Finals were last week, try to keep up old woman." The younger woman – presumably Lorie – replied with a roll of her eyes. "Besides, we felt bad because we can't be there with you guys!"

"You always do."

"Where's Jimmy?" This was from the man. Presumably Will. Jim debated on whether to stand up or just stay right where he was. He had no idea who these kids even were.

Andi glanced down at him, raising an eyebrow, before fixing her eyes back on the screen. "Uh, Jimmy had a headache, went to bed early. I'll tell him to call you two tomorrow."

"Alright. Hope he's ok." Lorie answered, sounding a little worried.

"He's fine." Andi replied, maybe a bit too quickly, but Lorie didn't seem to notice. Andi's brows furrowed. "Hey, what are you all dressed up for?"

"Oh! Right." Lorie blushed lightly. "I got invited to a party." She stepped away from the screen, showing off her outfit. "Do you like it?"

"That dress is a little short don't you think? Who are you going with?"

"No one special. Just some friends."

"Just some friends?" Andi scowled. "Have you met these friends Will?"

"Hey, you're not dragging me into it." Will held up his hands in surrender. "I'm not her babysitter."

"Because I don't _need _a babysitter! I'm a big girl, you know!"

"I still don't like the idea of you going anywhere with anyone in that dress, and you know Jimmy –" Andi broke off her reply abruptly, glancing down at Jim again. He wondered who these two were that Andi, and he too apparently, would be so protective of the young, but obviously grown, woman. "Would agree if he were here at the moment."

"Oh, hey, they're here!" There was a knock on the door in the background, Lorie sounded excited. "Right, so, we love you guys and all that, bye!"

"Just be carefu–" Andi started, but broke off when the screen went blank, shaking her head as she brought a hand up to rub the back of her neck. "I swear, that girl must be looking to get herself in some kind of trouble. Does she have any idea what kind of people are out there just waiting…" She trail off with a sigh as she turned back to him. He didn't know what to say and just stared up at her, expression blank. "You don't remember them." She sounded incredulous now. "You really don't remember them." He shook his head. "Our brother and sister? William and Loretta, Jimmy, we practically raised them!"

Raised them. Their brother and sister and they'd raised them and he couldn't' remember? He closed his eyes and tried to make the memories come. They would, they had to, he just couldn't – his mind didn't work the same as Andi's, or anyone's really, it had to do with his telepathy. His headache only got more intense. He brought both hands up to clutch his head, pulling at his hair a bit. Andi's voice echoed out, calling his name, but the pain worsened still… and he was out.

* * *

_**Blah. Not my favorite chapter here. Sorry it's super short.**_


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